


A Morte Molestus

by MagicalStarling



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, BAMF Death, BAMF Harry, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, F/M, Immortal Harry, M/M, Manipulative Dumbledore, Master of Death, Moral Ambiguity, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Sexual Content, Slow Build, Temporary Character Death, Violence, grey!Harry, snarky Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-13
Updated: 2018-04-26
Packaged: 2018-09-24 00:12:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 90,312
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9690506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicalStarling/pseuds/MagicalStarling
Summary: A bored Death sees something interesting in a young Harry Potter and decides to screw with Fate and intervene, earning Harry immortality and a strange friendship with Death.





	1. Chapter One

Death disliked Halloween. 

Sure, it had once been rather exciting, fun even. Back when mortals used the time to pay tribute to Death and took advantage of the weakened Barrier to communicate with lost loved ones. But with each year the traditions of old faded away. Few thought of Death, unless they were watching a slasher film. And Death barely bothered to lower the Barrier anymore.

Death blamed commercialization. Mortal businesses had hijacked the day to turn it into an excuse to sell cheap candy and colorful costumes, that frankly freaked Death out. 

But on 31 October, 1981 Death passed through the Barrier into the mortal world, something the being rarely did these days. 

Death was following the actions of one Tom Marvolo Riddle, or Voldemort, as he prefered. A name that Death got a kick out of, because really, flight of death? Though silly name aside, the man who was currently being proclaimed as the darkest lord in centuries, had caught Death’s attention. 

After all, not just anyone would rip their soul apart to avoid Death’s grip, let alone do it multiple times. Talk about overkill, and look who was talking. Plus Death had found the wizard’s exploits to be rather amusing as he ran around terrorizing Britain with his Death Eaters. Death Eaters, another amusing name. 

On that night the dark wizard was heading towards Godric’s Hollow all because of a silly prophecy saying that some child would defeat him. Death really needed to have a chat with Fate about these fucking prophecies. All they ever did was mess with shit. 

Death appeared in the house that belonged to the Potters just as the flash of green light faded, leaving James Potter lying dead on the floor. With a wave of its hand the man’s soul was collected by Death, though it struggled to return to the world of the living. A struggle it lost of course. Really thought Death, souls were such ungrateful things. It was not often that Death itself reaped a soul. It should be considered a high honor. 

Death moved through the house like smoke and watched the woman beg for her child’s life. Useless thought Death as the wand was once again raised. Death collected the woman’s soul before moving to hover over the crib, waiting to claim the last remaining soul in the house.

Death stared down at the child, a babe, just a little over a year old. Barely any sort of existence, especially when compared to the eons Death had surveyed over.

The child was silent, seeming completely unaware of the situation unfolding around him. Though Death assumed that was for the best. Mortals often seemed to think that it was best to die in their sleep so as to not notice the passing. A silly notion really, for Death did not care when the person was struck down, and people tended to notice that they died whether they were awake or not.        

Then the child stirred and opened his eyes, the same green as the curse that had killed his parents, and stared up at Death. No, not at Death, Death quickly amended, for no one could see Death unless allowed. But then something extraordinary happened, impossible, but nevertheless, extraordinary.

The child smiled, and in that moment Death realized that the child could see the being hovering over him. How, thought Death just as the child was bathed in an eerie green light. Death growled in frustration, no longer amused by the one known as Voldemort. With a flick of a bony wrist Voldemort was flung across the room, not dead, at least not entirely. The body that had once housed the little remains of his soul was dead, but that small portion of soul remained, tethered to the mortal world. 

Death reached down and clutched the child’s soul in its bony hand and sighed. Such a bright and powerful soul. Death would definitely have to talk to Fate about screwing with mortal affairs. This child, who had somehow seen Death and showed no fear, the one truly interesting thing in years, gone because of a prophecy.

The soul pulsed in Death’s hand, not struggling to break free and Death noticed something within its brightness; a dark spot. And Death laughed, a truly chilling and frightening sound. 

Screw you Fate thought Death. This was too interesting an opportunity to pass up. Death hadn’t truly interfered in the lives of mortals in years. Not since the Peverell brothers, though that had been a bit of a disaster. Though entertaining for a little while, people quickly discounted the stories of the Hallows and turned it into a children’s story. A freaking children’s story. 

But this, thought Death, this would truly be interesting. Death had led a rather lonely and tiresome existence, not that such thoughts were ever voiced aloud. Sure there was Fate, though she was a bitch, and the other entities, not that Death really talked to them, and then there were the reapers. Though they worked under Death and seemed to fear and respect the being equally, which made it rather difficult to have an intelligent conversation with them.

The child however, he could solve this problem. Death called forth one of its reapers just to rip the creature's power from it the moment it arrived, and placed the power into the child’s soul. Then Death released the soul and watched it renter its body.

Harry James Potter. Death wasn’t too fond of the child’s name, it wasn’t very awe inspiring after all. Perhaps the child could go by Hadrian Peverell. That way if he insisted on going by Harry he could and he was descended from the Peverells, which Death found rather fitting. Death would have to work on it.  

This all happened in a matter of seconds, the child’s body hadn’t even begun to cool before jerking back to life. 

Death stood watch over the child as a man with long black hair came bursting into the room. The man cradled the woman’s body and sobbed and cried out in agony. Death always found mourning to be both ridiculous and boring. All beings were aware of Death and that they couldn’t escape it, but when it struck nearby, they lost it. 

The man stood suddenly and without even glancing at the child, fled from the room. A few minutes later another man entered. He paused in the doorway and stared down at the body of the woman, his face an interesting mixture of grief and anger. He walked past the woman and went to the crib. He let out a small gasp then sobbed in relief at the sight of the still breathing child and lifted the boy into his arms. Death followed them out of the house and watched as the man was stopped by a half-giant. 

Death only half listened to their words, too engrossed with the child who hadn’t taken his eyes off of the skeleton figure who grinned it's eternal smile down at him.  

The child was transported from the man to the half-giant who got onto a motorcycle and took off into the air. It quickly became apparent that the man didn’t have a clue how to ride the bike, so with a sigh Death spread his cloak around the bike and its passengers, steadying the ride.

Death was shocked for a moment to feel the power of one of the Hallows, the Elder Wand to be exact, but then Death should have expected Albus Dumbledore to be involved. Maybe Death should try to pay more attention when talking to Fate.

Death watched as Dumbledore talked with the cat woman about leaving the child with his relatives. Death agreed with the cat woman, the child should not be left in their care, but Dumbledore ignored her words and left the child on the doorstep.

Really, thought Death, rather cross, you couldn’t even bother with a warming spell for the poor child. 

This would not do thought Death staring down at the now sleeping child. This would not do at all. 

Then Death fully stepped through the Barrier into the mortal plain, taking on the appearance of a rather plain looking woman with brown hair and brown eyes. She picked up the child, cradling him in her arms. She plucked the note from his blanket and set it ablaze until nothing remained of it. 

Then the two disappeared just to reappear in London in front of a building labeled Wool’s Orphanage. Perfect thought Death, and wonderfully ironic. Though she would make sure that the child’s upbringing was not like his. She walked to the door and set the child down, placing a small card that said Hadrian Peverell within his blankets, then rang the doorbell. 

Death watched as the door was answered and the child was brought inside. Now this would be fun thought Death, a ghastly grin spreading across its ancient face. 


	2. Chapter Two

Wool’s Orphanage was an all boys orphanage located in a dingy building on the outskirts of London. The orphanage often struggled financially and the few staff there were constantly feared that the little orphanage would be shut down. Despite this they worked hard to never turn away any child.

So when Harry Potter, now known as Hadrian Peverell, was left on the doorstep, he was immediately taken in.

He was given a small room in the corner of the second floor with a view looking into the yard. Typically young children, especially babies, would be adopted rather quick, but strangely no one adopted Hadrian. Though people came to visit the young boy and many seemed interested, none adopted him. 

He was a good enough baby, beautiful with dark hair and stunning green eyes. Though the staff had to admit that there was something odd about the child. At times when most children would cry or throw tantrums, he would just sit silently and watch until he was given what he wanted, which was, odd. 

Then there was his eyes. Though stunning in color, the staff all agreed that there was something about them. They were unnerving and seemed to hold far too much intelligence for a mere babe and no one seemed capable of holding the child’s gaze for long.

Except for Amanda Parrington that is. Amanda took over caring for the child since he arrived at the orphanage. While the other staff turned away from the child’s gaze, she would stare right into his eyes. 

She would sit with young Hadrian and tell him stories late into the night. If anyone were to overhear her words they would have been quite startled. For though she told stories of magic and wizards, they were no children's stories. She spoke of many things, including life and love and death and tragedy, all completely uncensored.  

One day, when Hadrian was four, he saw a strange man outside the orphanage. He was dressed in strange clothes and when Hadrian looked at him head on, he seemed almost transparent and seemed to shimmer in the air. When he asked Amanda about the man she seemed shocked, but then thrilled that Hadrian could see the man, though Hadrian didn’t understand why.

Hadrian grew to love Amanda and while most children would have been freaked out by her stories, Hadrian loved them. 

But when Hadrian grew older she began coming around less and less until one day when Hadrian was six a whole week went by without him seeing her. It was the longest Hadrian had gone without seeing Amanda so he asked the orphanage's matron, Ms. Karnoff, about where she went, just to be told that there was no staff member by the name of Amanda Parrington ever employed at the orphanage. 

Though that night when Hadrian went to his room, he found a pile of books on his bed. They were strange books about magic and Hadrian read them through thoroughly. Afraid that one of the other boys or staff member might find them, Hadrian hid the books under a loose floorboard in front of his small wardrobe.   

When Hadrian turned seven he got a roommate. The boy, Brady Tennison, was two years older than Hadrian with a tan complexion covered in freckles, wild dark brown hair, and even wilder hazel eyes. He constantly wore band tee-shirts and worn jeans and he claimed to have run away from home. 

He was a troublemaker and took no shit from the other boys or the staff and made sure Hadrian did the same. Wherever he went, Hadrian followed. Brady would steal candy from a small convenience store a couple streets over and the two would split it. He would sneak out of the orphanage with Hadrian and take him to the zoo. Hadrian’s favorite part of the zoo was the reptile house, he especially loved the snakes.  

When the other boys began picking on Hadrian, he turned to Brady for help, but the older boy refused to intervene. He told Hadrian that he needed to learn to fight his own battles. Though he did teach Hadrian basic self defense, and more importantly, how to throw a punch.

Eventually Hadrian decided to show his books to Brady.

“Have you ever tried to do any of the spells?” asked Brady flipping through a book on charms.

“No,” said Hadrian, “why would I do that? It’s not like magic is real.”

Brady had looked Hadrian straight in the eye and looked more serious than Hadrian had ever seen him. 

“How can you be sure if you haven’t tried?” he asked before tossing the book aside and going outside.

That night Hadrian flipped through the books until he came across a spell that didn’t look too difficult. Feeling slightly foolish and not quite sure what to do, he removed his glasses, which were taped together after they had been snapped in half by one of the other boys, Keane Pierson. 

He focused his thoughts on what he wanted then whispered,  _ “Oculus Reparo.” _

To his surprise he felt a strange energy travel through him and his whole body seemed to tingle and grow warm, then his glasses repaired themselves with a small snap, even the tape disappeared.

Hadrian couldn’t help the smile of disbelief and amazement that crossed his face and he found himself laughing. He jumped up and ran to his sleeping roommate, shaking him awake. 

“Brady!” he called as loud as he dared, not wishing to get in trouble with any of the staff, “Brady wake up!”

Brady mumbled before sitting up, blinking at him through blurry eyes.

“What?” he asked, his voice thick with sleep.

“I did it!” said Hadrian holding up his glasses, “I did magic!”

This seemed to wake Brady up and he grabbed Hadrian’s glasses to examine them. Then a mischievous grin appeared on his face. 

“You know what that means Hadrian?” he asked and Hadrian shook his head, “You’re a wizard and things just got a whole lot more interesting.”

After that Hadrian worked on practicing his magic as much as he could. He memorized every spell in the book with Brady’s help and he would practice the spells around the orphanage and school. 

One day Hadrian was outside in the orphanage’s small backyard practicing levitating rocks when a voice spoke up behind him. 

“Is that the best you can do?” 

Hadrian turned to see the strange shimmering man he had seen years ago.

“Well I’m only eight and still learning,” replied Hadrian stiffly. 

The man seemed stunned for a moment, staring at Hadrian as though he had sprouted a second head.

“You can see me?” he asked.

“Of course,” said Hadrian, his eyes narrowing, “Why wouldn’t I be able to see you?”

“Most people can’t,” replied the man. 

Hadrian learned that the man was Sioltach Backus and according to him he was a wizard and had died over a hundred years ago. He began helping Hadrian with his magic and soon Hadrian felt confident with all the spells in his books. He was immensely proud of himself, though Sioltach was quick to point out that there was still much to learn. And sure enough, that night Hadrian returned to his room to find another pile of books waiting for him. 

These books contained more difficult spells, but Hadrian was determined to master them.

Shortly after Hadrian got the new books, Brady disappeared. Most people assumed that he had run away again and the staff didn’t seem to think that he would be coming back. Hadrian was angry at Brady, but he also couldn’t blame the boy too much, if he could leave the orphanage, he would. 

After one practically hard and draining magic lesson with Sioltach, Hadrian decided to take a walk down to the zoo on his own. On the way he had to cross through a small park and as he walked across it, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. He looked over to see a woman on a bench surrounded by several people. Hadrian frowned slightly, not seeing anything strange about the sight, before he realized that everyone expect the women were ghosts. And the woman was talking to them.

Hadrian approached the woman cautiously and she turned to look at him. She had ivory skin and thick, curly red hair and blue eyes. Her left eye was a paler blue than her right eye and Hadrian wondered if she was blind in the eye. She smiled at Hadrian, or at least the right side of her face did, the left side didn’t seem to want to move.  

“Hello,” said Hadrian, “who are you talking to?”

The woman seemed to examine him for a moment before answering, her voice like honey.

“A few old acquaintances of mine, though they don’t seem very fond of me.”

“Why not?” asked Hadrian approaching the bench and sitting down next to the woman. 

“It’s one of life’s mysteries I assure you,” replied the woman.

“So you can see ghosts?” said Hadrian, his voice dropping to a whisper.

The woman laughed, the sound reminding Hadrian of windchimes. 

“Yes,” she said, “but then any wizard can see ghosts. These are spirits, only very few people can see them.”

“Oh,” said Hadrian staring at the group of odd looking men, “spirits. So are you a wizard?”

“A witch,” said the woman, twirling a curl around her finger.  

The woman nodded then as if making up her mind about something and stood. She offered Hadrian her hand and without thinking about it Hadrian took it and allowed the woman to lead him from the park. He knew what he was doing was stupid, he had just met the woman, but there was something about her. 

“What’s your name?” asked Hadrian, suddenly realizing he didn’t know. 

“Hela,” replied the woman with another strange half smile.

“Hadrian,” he told her and she nodded as though she already knew.

Hela lead Hadrian into an old looking building and they climbed the stairs to the roof. Hadrian noticed that the left side of Hela’s body seemed stiff, as though it didn’t want to move. On the roof she brought him to what looked like another building on top of the roof that was made of glass. They went inside and Hadrian's eyes widened at the sight of plants. There were plants everywhere and the place smelled of dirt and their scents all mingling together.

“This is a greenhouse!” he exclaimed in excitement, for he had never been in one before. 

That day Hela allowed him to just wander through the plants and admire them, but when he returned to the greenhouse the next day, she put him to work weeding and tending the garden. She worked next to him, teaching him how to care for the plants. She would tell him the plants’ names in both English and Latin and tell him their properties. Hadrian enjoyed the work and he liked listening to Hela talk. 

Hadrian began going to visit Hela everyday after school. About a week later Hala decided that he needed to learn Latin and so began teaching him the language. Hadrian, wanting to impress her, went to the public library and got out several books on Latin and began reading them, though most of them he didn’t understand and he arrived at Hela’s with lots of questions, all of which she answered. 

Hadrian liked Hela and he enjoyed working in the garden with her. Occasionally spirits would come to visit them and give Hadrian advice on life and magic.

“What’s the difference between ghosts and spirits?” he asked her one day after talking to a rather stuck up woman who had floated through the wall in front of him.

“Ghosts are beings who wouldn’t move on, or couldn’t, due to unfinished business,” said Hela, “Spirits are imprints left behind by a person that fade over time, though some spirits linger longer than others. The spirits of witches and wizards tend to linger for a while after death. They’re sort of like an after image, but containing all the memories of the former person.”

Later that same day, Hela declared Hadrian ready to begin potion making. She didn’t seem to use any instructions or recipes to make her potions. She would simply look around her garden as though thinking and then tell Hadrian what plants to get. She also had jars and jars worth of other, things, that Hadrian didn’t have names for. They were all animal parts and Hela began explaining to him what they were and their functions, switching between Latin and English. 

She instructed Hadrian on how to prepare the ingredients and they would make potion after potion which Hela said she would sell in the Wizarding World.

“Wizarding World?” asked Hadrian, excited, “There’s a Wizarding World?”

“Yes,” said Hela with a smile, “I’ll have to take you someday soon. I can’t have you being completely clueless when you go to school.”

Then Hela told him about Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Hadrian absorbed every word, not even noticing that she said everything in Latin. 

That night he went to bed imaging receiving his Hogwarts letter and wishing that he could leave right then.

He was woken in the middle of the night by a sound outside his window and his first thought was that it was the owl bringing him his letter. He pushed himself out of bed to look and froze.

Kneeling on the roof, looking into his room was a girl.


	3. Chapter Three

Hadrian stared at the girl in shock as she pointed to the window and he realized after a moment that she wanted him to let her in. He opened the window and the girl slipped into the room. 

The girl appeared to be around Hadrian’s age with dark skin, thick hair, and golden eyes that reminded Hadrian of a cat. 

“Hello,” said the girl brushing herself off, staring at Hadrian expectantly. 

“Hi,” said Hadrian, “Um, you realize this is an orphanage right? An all boys orphanage. We don’t have a lot of money.”

The girl grinned and it reminded him of Brady’s smile right before he did something that got him into trouble.

“I’m not here to rob the place,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Oh,” said Hadrian, then stuck his hand out, “I’m Hadrian.”

The girl seemed to think for a moment before shaking his hand, “Emma.” 

“That’s not your real name, is it?” said Hadrian raising an eyebrow.

“Nope,” said Emma, her grin widening, “I like you.”

“Thanks?” said Hadrian.

“Your welcome,” said Emma jumping onto the windowsill and climbing back out onto the roof. She glanced back at Hadrian, “You coming?”

“What?” said Hadrian in confusion, “Where are you going?”

“I’m going to blow your mind,” said the girl, holding out her hand for him, “come with me if you want to live.”

Hadrian laughed and took her hand, allowing her to pull him onto the roof.

“Well, when put it that way...” 

Emma lead him to the edge of the roof and looked at Hadrian as though expecting him to do something.

“Well go on,” she said, “use your magic.”

“My magic?” said Hadrian, how did this girl know that he was a wizard?

“Yeah,” she said with a nod, “use it to get down.”

“Um, I don’t know a spell for that,” he told her.

“You don’t need a spell,” she said as though that were obvious, “just focus on your magic and it will listen.”

Hadrian stared down at the ground and focused on floating down. He reached into himself, feeling for his magic and found that it leaped forward as though eager to do his bidding. Well here goes nothing, he thought and stepped off the roof. He didn’t go splat on the ground, though it wasn’t very elegant either. He seemed to just slow his descent and soften the landing rather than actually float down.

“Not bad,” said Emma who did actually float down.

“Give me a break,” said Hadrian, but he was grinning, “I’ve never thought to try and fly before.”

“Well then you clearly lack imagination then,” said Emma, “now come on.”

She took off across the yard and bolted over the fence. Hadrian followed after a moment, struggling to get over the fence.

“Where are we going?” he yelled as he ran after the girl who suddenly came to a stop.

“The Wizarding World of course,” said the girl sticking her right hand out into the road as though hailing a cab, though the street was deserted.

“The Wizarding World? We’re going to the Wizarding World?”

“Just Diagon Alley,” said Emma looking down the street, “it should be here by now.”

“What should be here?” asked Hadrian, though his question was answered a second later when a blue double-decker bus came speeding up and came to a screeching halt in front of them.

“Hide your scar,” hissed Emma just as the bus doors opened, and Hadrian reached up to make sure that the strange lighting bolt shaped scar on his forehead was covered by his bangs. 

They climbed onto the bus and Emma paid their way with strange looking coins. The man stared at them for a moment, but didn’t question why a couple of kids on their own wanted a ride in the middle of the night.

Instead of seats the bus had beds and when it took off, they began rolling around. Hadrian stumbled as the bus jerked forward and Emma grabbed him and pulled him down onto the bed next to her. 

“Why am I doing this?” Hadrian asked her as the bus took a turn way too fast.

“Because you have a sense of adventure?” said Emma. 

The bus came to a halt and Emma took his hand and dragged him off. They were in front of a dimly lit pub that was nestled between a bookstore and a record store. The sign declared the place as the Leaky Cauldron. 

“Come on,” said Emma leading him into the pub. Inside the pub was dark and shabby with a bar and a number of tables. The pub was mostly empty, the few remaining customers glancing up at Emma and Hadrian as they passed, just to look away without a word, “This way.”

She led him through the pub until they came to a brick wall.

“Watch very carefully,” she instructed him, then tapped the bricks in what looked like a random order. Then to Hadrian’s shock the wall opened, the bricks moving aside.

“Welcome to Diagon Alley,” announced Emma.

Even at night the alley was a sight to behold with colorful shops lining the cobblestone street.

“Wow,” breathed Hadrian and Emma smirked.

“Come on,” she said dragging him through the street. 

She lead him to a small gap between two buildings and still holding his hand she jumped and the two of them soared up into the air and landed on the building's roof.

Hadrian cried out in alarm and Emma laughed, “Now that’s how you fly.”

“I guess so,” he replied with a slightly shaky grin. 

The two of them raced along the rooftops as the sun began to rise. Hadrian watched as shop owners began preparing for the day’s business. Soon witches and wizards began to flood the street dressed in strange and colorful, but wonderful, looking clothes.

Emma floated the two of them down onto the street and they joined the crowd. Hadrian tried not to walk into anyone on the busy street, but after a little while he realized that people seemed to be steering out of his way. No, not his way, Emma’s. 

“What are we doing?” he asked her curiously.

“Shopping!” she replied with a grin.

“But I don’t have any money,” said Hadrian. The orphanage didn’t give the boys any money and besides, did the Wizarding World even take pounds? Emma had paid the man on the bus with gold coins.

“Yes you do,” said Emma, “though I guess it would draw unwanted attention if you were to access your vault right now. So I’ll pay for whatever you want, and don’t hold back.” 

She brought him to a shop labeled Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions telling him that he needed a wardrobe change, desperately. Hadrian just glared at her, it wasn’t as though he would wear these old worn out clothes the orphanage gave him if he could wear something else.

He was measured by a woman with a measuring tape that moved on its own and he bought several outfits; all shirts and pants that would fit into what Emma called the muggle world.

Hadrian walked out of the shop with a large pile of clothes. 

“Maybe we should have gotten you a bag first,” she commented and they went to a shop that sold various bags and trunks. Emma got him a black bag that she said was made of dragonhide. It was enchanted so that it was bigger on the inside, would remain light no matter how much you put in it, and wouldn’t get damaged. They put his clothes in the bag and continued shopping.  

Emma then took him to a shop that sold quills, ink and parchment paper, telling him that he would have to practice his writing before he got to school. 

Next was a potions shop where they shifted through the products and Emma told him what to look for in quality ingredients. The size of the veins in livers, the state of the eyes and wings in bugs. 

The last shop Emma brought him to was a bookshop and his eyes lit up.

“I thought you might like it,” she said with a laugh as they entered Flourish and Blotts. Hadrian bought books in every subject, including books on recent history and wizard etiquette. Every time he so much as looked at a book with any interest Emma would grab it and throw into their basket. 

Hadrian was thrilled as they left the bookshop. He had enough reading material to keep him busy before he could go to Hogwarts.

The two of them then went to Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour. Hadrian got a dish of strawberry and peanut butter ice cream and Emma got a chocolate milkshake. They sat outside enjoying their ice cream and watched as the wizards and witches bustled about. 

“What do you see?” Emma asked him suddenly.

“Um, a magical shopping district?” said Hadrian.

“No,” said Emma, “not see,  _ See _ .”

“There’s a difference?”

Emma groaned and scooted her seat closer to his.

“I mean, can you see the magic?” 

Hadrian frowned and looked around the busy shopping area. He could feel a slight hum to the air that he assumed was the area’s magic, but he didn’t think he could see anything.

“I can feel it, but that’s all,” Hadrian told her eventually.

Emma nodded and reached forward and flicked him between the eyes.

“Hey!” he cried.

“Look again,” instructed Emma and Hadrian did, and his jaw dropped.

The street was lit up by bright colored lights that shone out of the shops and surrounded the witches and wizards in what he assumed were auras. He could see brightly lit strands appear as magic was performed, connecting the caster to the object or person they were directing the magic towards.

“That’s amazing!” he said in awe, “How did you do that?”

Emma gave him a smug grin.

“It’s a gift I’m burdened with, one that I’m willing to share with you. Few witches and wizards are capable of using the Sight. And most who have it are driven mad.”

“What!?” cried Hadrian in alarm, “Driven mad! Then forget it, I don’t want it!”

“Oh relax you big baby,” said Emma, “I’ll teach you how to close your Sight and open it at will.” 

Emma instructed him to close his eyes and then focus on disconnecting from the magic around him by focusing on his own magical core. After a few tries the lights disappeared, though he could still feel the buzz of magic in the air. She then showed him how to reconnect with the rest of the magic to open his Sight.

He grinned when he did it successfully.

“Is the light around people auras?” he asked her, watching as people passed by.

“That’s what most people call them,” replied Emma, “it’s like their life force or soul shining though. Those with magic have brighter auras because you can also see their magic, though their souls are no different for it since their magic just escapes into the environment when they die.”

Hadrian nodded and then turned to look at Emma and almost fell off his seat. Emma looked completely the same with his Sight; she had no aura. 

“Emma?” he asked nervously and she glanced up at him from her milkshake, “Are you dead?”

Emma threw back her head and laughed so hard that tears streamed down her face and she needed several minutes to control herself before she was able to answer. 

“Naw, I’m not dead,” she replied after several minutes had passed, “though you’re close to the truth.” 

Hadrian frowned, “I don’t get it, what are you?”

“I’m Death,” she replied, taking a sip from her milkshake. 

“Death?” said Hadrian in disbelief, “Like the grim reaper?”

“I occasionally look like that,” she said, “though I rarely reap any souls these days. I leave that to my reapers. They’re like my underlings, little mini mes.”

Hadrian could do nothing but stare at Emma, no, Death he corrected himself. He knew he should be terrified. Hell, he should be running away as fast as he could, screaming. But for some reason he didn’t, and he didn’t want to leave. He realized after a moment that he liked hanging out with Death as strange as that may be.

“Am I gonna die?” he asked Death, feeling oddly detached, as though he would be fine with whatever the answer was.

“No silly,” said Death, waving a hand at him, “I don’t plan on reaping your soul anytime soon. Or ever really.”

“Ever?” said Hadrian, “What does that mean?”

“It means Hadrian Peverell,” replied Death, licking chocolate ice cream off her chin, “that you have been granted a gift that most people have died trying to get. Immortality. Boom. Your welcome.”

“I’m immortal?” said Hadrian in disbelief, “How?”

“Yes,” said Death, “I mixed your soul with the power of a reaper, so instant immortality.” 

“You mixed my soul with a reaper! When?”

“Oh you were a baby,” Death said dismissively, “didn’t even notice. Plus you were dead at the time.”

“Dead,” said Hadrian in disbelief, “Care to explain?”

So Death told Hadrian the story of Tom Riddle, a wizard who feared dying above everything else and his quest to conquer Britain and become immortal. Death told him about his parents and the prophecy that sent them into hiding and what happened that night in Godric’s Hollow. 

“So if I have this, reapers power, in my soul, what does that mean?” he asked once Death finished talking.

“Besides immortality, it will boast your magical ability and your magical core. You’ll also be able to control elements pretty easily, you know, earth, air, water, fire. And you’ll have some power over life and death and be able to reap souls and wield a death scythe. You also might gain some more demonic attributes when you get holder. Faster reflexes, stronger body, who knows. It’s not like I’ve ever done this before.” 

Hadrian was silent as he absorbed this.  

“The Wizarding World actually thinks that you defeated Voldemort you know,” said Death suddenly. 

“How?” said Hadrian, “I was a baby.”

“I know right?” said Death, “Bunch of morons, giving you all the credit for something I did. But then that’s pretty much my existence in a nutshell. Whenever I try to do anything fun Fate has to show up and start nagging me. ‘You can’t keep messing with people, you’re Death, you’re supposed to be a superior being so act like it. Stop messing around, you keep creating parallel worlds.’”

She said the last bit in a nasally sounding voice, screwing up her nose. 

Hadrian couldn’t help but laugh and Death grinned at him. 

“That story about Voldemort and my family,” he started slowly, “it sounded familiar.”

“That’s because I told it to you when you were a baby,” said Death, “shit I’m out of milkshake.” 

“When I was a baby?” said Hadrian, “The only person who told me stories when I was a baby was Amanda, but the orphanage said she didn’t exist...wait, you were Amanda, weren’t you!”

“Ding ding ding!” said Death, “I was Amanda and Brady and Hela.”

“You were all three, the entire time,” he said, but as he spoke he found that he wasn’t very surprised.

“Yeah, though I admit that Hela was pretty obvious after all.”

“Hela, like Hel,” said Hadrian nodding, “the name of the Norse goddess of death and the realm of the underworld.”

“I guess,” said Death, “though I was going more for Hela, the Marvel comic book character. Though she was based off of Hel.”

Death leaned back, tilting back her chair so that it was balancing on just the back legs.

“I feel like I’m forgetting something...Oh yeah! You’re real name is Harry Potter. I named you Hadrian Peverell when I left you at the orphanage.”

“Should I go by Harry Potter then?” he asked Death who shrugged.

“I don’t like it, but I hadn’t expected your name to become so well known in the Wizarding World. It might help you to go by your birth name when you’re at school. Though it would be interesting to see Dumbledore panic because he lost his boy saviour.” 

Hadrian and Death walked around Diagon Alley for a little longer before Death said it was time to return to the orphanage. Death took Hadrian’s hand and they appeared back in his room at the orphanage. 

“I’ll be around,” Death told Hadrian, “soon you’ll be able to contact me when I’m not in a physical form. Until then read your books and I’ll visit you when you sleep, we can talk then. I’ll tell you more about the Wizarding World, especially since those history books you got are pretty biased.”  

Death snapped her fingers and disappeared leaving Hadrian alone in the orphanage. He collapsed onto his bed. How was this his life? 


	4. Chapter Four

The next year passed in a blur for Hadrian, he read his books as often as he could and went to the greenhouse to look after the plants and practice making potions. At night Death would talk to him in his dreams. Each night Death looked different and they would be someplace new every night. One night they sat on top of the Eiffel Tower, another night in an empty field, another night in the ruins of a crumbling castle.

Death would tell him about the history of the Wizarding World and about famous wizards. Death would occasionally even show Hadrian a memory of an event, like the famous duel between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald.

When Hadrian's eleventh birthday finally arrived, Death burst into his room looking like a teenage boy with bright blue hair.

“I’ve got it!” he yelled brandishing a letter in the air.

“My Hogwarts letter!” cried Hadrian jumping out of bed.

“What else?” said Death handing him the letter, “I had to intercept an owl on the way to Privet Drive. You’d think that Dumbledore in all his infinite wisdom would have been able to realize that you’re not there.”

Hadrian ripped open the seal on the envelope and read it through twice. The letter was addressed to Harry Potter and included a list of required supplies.

“Why can’t I bring a broomstick?” he asked Death, interrupting his ramblings about Dumbledore.

“I think it has something to do with a first year falling into the black lake on his free period,” said Death dismissively, “but who cares about brooms. You don’t need brooms to fly.”

“Maybe I wanted to play Quidditch?” he said to Death.

Death shrugged and held his arm out to him. Hadrian took it and they appeared in front of the Leaky Cauldron. Well Hadrian did anyway, Death was gone. Harry looked around, but he couldn’t see the figure.

 _“You’re going to have to shop on your own,”_ said a voice in his head that Hadrian recognized as Death, _“or at least appear to be on your own. And remember, you’re Harry Potter to these people, Savior of the Wizarding World.”_

Hadrian nodded to himself and walked into the Leaky Cauldron which was much more crowded than it was last time he was here. He went straight to the brick wall in the back and tapped the bricks in the correct order to open the wall.

 _“Where should I go first?”_ he thought as he stepped into Diagon Alley.

 _“Gringotts,”_ came the immediate reply, _“you’re going to need to access your vault and take out some money.”_

He nodded and set off towards the bank, an impressive looking white marble building with Greek style columns. He walked into the bank and located a free goblin teller. He had read about Gringotts, the goblin run bank that was considered to be the best protected bank in the Wizarding World, so he wasn’t surprised when the goblin didn’t bother to look up to acknowledge him. He knew that goblins didn’t like wizards.

“Hello,” he said politely, “I would like to access my vault.”

“Key,” said the goblin, holding out a wrinkled hand without looking up.

“I don’t actually have my key,” said Hadrian, “my name is Harry Potter.”

This got the goblin’s attention and he finally looked at the boy. Without a word he handed Hadrian a small knife and a piece of parchment. Hadrian took it without needing to be prompted or told what to do and pricked his thumb with the knife, allowing a few drops of his blood to land on the parchment before handing both back to the goblin.

The goblin studied the parchment for a few moments before going still. The goblin glanced down at Harry before scurrying behind his desk and headed towards the head goblin.

 _“What was that about?”_ wondered Hadrian.

 _“Something has made him a little nervous,”_ came Death’s reply, sounding amused.

When the goblin didn’t return right away Hadrian made his way over to where he stood with the head goblin, both bent over the parchment.

“Is everything alright?” he asked gaining their attention. The head goblin grinned, showing off his pointy teeth, in what he realized was supposed to be a friendly smile.

“Everything is fine,” replied the goblin, “we just weren’t expecting to see such, peculiar, titles.

“May I see?” asked Hadrian and with a nod the goblin handed him the parchment which had filled with writing.

 

Name: Harry James Potter

Alias: Hadrian Jameson Peverell

Guardians: James Potter (deceased)

Lily Potter née Evans (deceased)

Sirius Black (imprisoned)

Wool’s Orphanage (caretakers)

Death  

Vault Access: Potter Trust Fund

Potter Vault (at seventeen)

Black Vault (at seventeen)

Peverell Vault

Gryffindor Vault

Titles: Potter Lordship

Black Lordship

Peverell Lordship

Head Reaper

Master of Death

 

 _“Interesting,”_ commented Death, _“though you better not let that Master of Death nonsense go to your head. Here I thought that_ _was just a name devised by mortals for whomever united the Hallows, which you haven’t done but will have to get working on.”_

_“What about Head Reaper?”_

_“You can keep that title. I’m above all reapers, plus that sounds like it actually involves work, so you can go ahead and handle that.”_

Hadrian rolled his eyes before focusing back on the two goblins who were watching him.

“Can I access my trust fund?”

“Of course Mr. Potter,” replied the head goblin, “Griphook will lead you to your vault.”

“Actually, I prefer Peverell, but thank you.”

Hadrian followed the first goblin, Griphook, to one of the carts and they plunged into the darkness of the vaults beneath the bank. Griphook opened up his vault for him and Hadrian couldn’t help but gap at the piles of gold coins. He scooped up a few handfuls and put them in his dragonhide bag before leaving the vault.

Just as he was about to get into the cart Death spoke up.

_“There’s one more thing you need to do.”_

Hadrian felt a strange force pushing out around him and felt as though his senses were being muffled. Sound stopped and he stopped breathing, but he didn’t feel like he needed air. He looked at Griphook and found the goblin was frozen, completely still and unblinking.

_“What’s going on? What did you do to him?”_

_“The goblin is fine. I’m simply manipulating time around you so that’s it's moving so slow it's almost stopped.”_

_“You can stop time?”_

_“I said almost stopped, don’t you listen? And you need to get going. There is one other vault you need to stop by.”_

_“Where?”_

Without warning Hadrian was plucked off the ground by invisible hands and was sent speeding through the tunnels, going deeper and deeper underground until he finally came to a halt in front of a large door with no keyhole.

 _“Open the door,”_ instructed Death, _“use your magic, sense it.”_

Hadrian reached out to feel the magic around the door and with Death’s guidance linked his magic with its magic, unlocking it. Hadrian walked in to find the vault empty save for a small object in a burlap sack. He felt something suddenly appear in his pocket and pulled out what looked like an exact replica of whatever was in the bag.

 _“Switch the items,”_ said Death and Hadrian did.

_“What is it?”_

_“The Philosopher’s stone.”_

Hadrian paused for a moment to stare down at the object. He had read about the Philosopher’s stone in a book about alchemy. It was supposed to turn things to gold and grant eternal life.

 _“What do I need this for?”_ he thought, thinking of his immortality.

_“It’s not for you idiot. It’s a bloody stone that can make people near immortal, do you think I want just anyone getting their hands on it? Plus it could be useful.”_

_“Could be?”_

_“I don’t know, I’m not Fate. And you better get going, this time freeze won’t last forever and the longer it does last the more damage your body will take.”_

This got Hadrian moving, running out of the vault and taking off back to where he had left Griphook.

_“Why didn’t you mention that earlier?”_

_“Well it’s not like you’ll die, and if you did cross the Barrier I would send you right back.”_

Harry landed back on the platform next to Griphook and time returned to its normal speed. He entered the cart and rode back up to the surface. He left Gringotts and stepped back into Diagon Alley which was even more crowded than it was before.

_“You should get your school robes next. There’s someone I think you might like to meet.”_

Hadrian was curious and took off towards Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions where he asked for two of the standard school robes as well as some other wizarding robes. He was lead to a stool to have his measurements taken; to his disappointment he hadn’t grown any taller since he was here last time. Maybe he should ask Death if there was a way to make him grow taller using magic.

On the stool next to his stood a boy with pale blond hair and grey eyes. He looked to be about Hadrian's age and had aristocratic features.

“You’re going to Hogwarts as well?” asked the boy and Hadrian nodded, “My father wanted me to go to Durmstrang, but my mother didn’t want me to go so far away.”

“Hogwarts is a good school though,” said Hadrian.

“I guess,” said the boy, “although Durmstrang is more selective about who they let in.”

“I don’t see how that matters,” said Hadrian, knowing that the boy was talking about the prejudices against muggle-borns and half-bloods.

“Really?” said the boy, turning and looking Hadrian up and down, no doubt wondering what he was.

“Yeah, after all, magic is magic. I’m a half-blood, but that doesn’t mean I’m automatically weaker or less than a pureblood,” he replied, “plus, everyone is the same in death.”

This shut the boy up for a little while, but not for too long.

“What house do expect to be in?”

“I haven’t really given it much thought,” he answered honestly.

“I’ll be in Slytherin,” said the boy, puffing out his chest with pride, “everyone in my family has been. I’m Draco Malfoy by the way.”

“Hadrian Peverell.”

He saw the boy’s eyes widen at the name, no doubt not expecting to hear the name Peverell, after all, the Peverell name had died out as it branched into other families long ago.

Both boys robes were finished and Hadrian paid for his things and put them away.

“It was nice talking to you,” he told the boy, “I’m sure I’ll see you at Hogwarts.”

_“You really wanted me to meet him?”_

_“Well, you do need a friend, cause you have to admit that you are lacking in that department.”_

_“I did have friends, it's not my fault that they all turned out to be you.”_

He then went and bought a trunk. He decided to spare no expense and bought one with multiple compartments, one for clothes, one for his school items, a library, a potions lab, and an apartment. He got it in black with silver clasps and his initials, HP, engraved in silver on it.

He shrunk the trunk down and placed it in his bag as he continued his shopping. He picked up his school books, which all looked incredibly easy and Death admitted that Harry may be rather bored in school, but it would give him time to work on other things.

Hadrien picked up his potion supplies, picking out his own ingredients, not willing to trust on blind faith the condition of the items of the already packed school kits. He only picked up animal products, knowing that all the plant items he would need could be picked in his greenhouse, and his plants were superior to the ones sold in the store.

He bought some more parchment paper, though he didn’t need anymore ink or quills since he had learned to enchant one of his quills to be more durable and never run out of ink, though he was currently working on making it so that it would write in different colors.

The last thing he went to purchase was his wand. He went to Ollivander’s wand shop, which was dusty and filled with row upon row of boxes stacked on top of each other. Ollivander was a strange man who may have freaked Hadrian out if he wasn’t friends with Death.

Ollivander had Hadrian try wand after wand, each one either did nothing or destroyed something in the shop. Each failure seemed to make Ollivander more excited and more determined. Hadrian didn’t see why he needed to bother with a wand, he’d been doing magic without a wand for years and Death had been having him practice wordless magic.

But Death assured him that he would need a wand at Hogwarts and he would find that it would help him focus his magic. He also said that Hadrian would eventually have to get the Elder Wand since it was rightfully his.

Eventually Hadrian was handed a wand that he felt his magic connect to and warmth spread through him.

“Very peculiar,” whispered Ollivander and Hadrian raised an eyebrow at him, “this wand is the brother wand of the wizard who gave you that scar.”

 _“That is interesting,”_ said Death.

Hadrian paid for his wand and left. He went to get some ice cream and sat outside with a strawberry and chocolate ice cream cone with nuts. He was joined a few minutes later by a boy his age with sandy brown hair. He smiled at Death who sat down and began eating his own ice cream.

“You should get an owl,” Death told him and Hadrian nodded. He had been wondering about getting an animal.

The two got up and walked to the Magical Menagerie where Hadrian immediately noticed a snowy white owl.

“Good choice,” said Death as Hadrian paid for the owl whom he had decided to name Hedwig. He carried Hedwig in her cage back to the Leaky Cauldron where he purchased a room until school started on the first of September. He had left a note at the orphanage saying that he was going to be attending a boarding school paid for by his parents before their deaths and not to expect him until next summer. Though Hadrian wouldn’t be returning to the orphanage if he could help it.

He settled into his room and began reading through his school books. After a little while Death, who had been hanging out in the room with him, declared that he was bored and gave Hadrian an old book in a language that he couldn’t understand. It was written in strange symbols like never he had seen before.

“It’s the Book of the Dead,” said Death, “I’m going to teach you the language of the dead so you can learn how to read it. From it you will learn necromancy. I’m also going to introduce you to someone to help teach you, but not until you get to school. This isn’t the place.”

Hadrian nodded and Death began teaching him the language of the dead.


	5. Chapter Five

About a week later Hadrian was sitting outside the ice cream shop reading a book and drinking a strawberry milkshake. He had quickly fallen into the habit of waking up early, eating at the Leaky Cauldron then wandering Diagon Alley, watching the witches and wizards move about. Then he would get himself an ice cream or shake and sit outside reading.

He didn’t practice the language of the dead outside his room and kept the book locked up in his trunk along with the stone. Death had helped him ward his trunk so only he could open it.

He had gone back to the bookstore and purchased a few books on Quidditch, curious about the sport after Death told him that his father had played. He had also stopped at the Quidditch supply store a few times to look at broomsticks. He really wanted to try flying on one. Death would make fun of the broomsticks and told him that they just furthered stereotypes about magical beings, though Death did assure Hadrian that he would have flying lessons at Hogwarts.

Death would often spend time with Hadrian, either taking human form or holding conversations in his head. He would often help Hadrian with the language of the dead at night in the Leaky Cauldron and answered any questions Hadrian had from his books. 

Hadrian would bug him about who the teacher was that Death said he was going to bring in, but Death refused to tell him.

One day Death appeared in Hadrian’s room, leaning over him as he slept.

“Get up!” he called, “You need to go to Wool’s!”

“What, why?” said Hadrian grabbing his glasses and combing a hand through his messy hair.

“It’s temporary,” Death assured him, “Dumbledore sent the half-giant to find you and tell you about how you’re a wizard, which seriously, why would he do that now? Does he want you to be completely lost and clueless, and that half-giant doesn’t exactly seem like the best person to explain everything to you.

“Anyway, the half-giant couldn’t find you, so the old man is looking for you himself and will be at the orphanage this morning to talk with you.”

“And you want me to be there,” said Hadrian pulling clothes out of his trunk and getting dressed. 

Death nodded, “I’ll handle the staff so they don’t tell Dumbledore that you haven’t been staying there and make sure that they never realize that you came back today.” 

Hadrian took Death’s outstretched hand they appeared in his room at the orphanage. The room was bare since Hadrian had taken all his stuff with him, but with a wave of Death’s hand, items appeared, giving the room a lived in feel. Hadrian picked up a pink stuffed animal unicorn from his bed.

“Really?”

Death shrugged and then transformed to take on the appearance of the matron, Ms. Karnoff and left Hadrien in the room. Hadrien stuffed the unicorn under his pillow and sat on his old bed with a copy of The Hobbit. He hadn’t gotten very far before there came a knock on the door and a man with a long silver beard, a silver mustache and long hair wearing half moon spectacles and lavender wizard robes stepped into the room.

Hadrian looked up at the man with faked interest as he gave Hadrian a grandfatherly smile. 

“Harry, may I come in?” he asked.

Hadrian let his eyes sweep over Hogwarts’ headmaster.

“You’re already in the room,” he replied and the man chuckled before conjuring a chair and sitting down. He looked at Hadrian, clearly expecting him to be impressed, but Hadrian barely raised an eyebrow. 

“I’m here to invite you to a special school that I am the headmaster of,” Dumbledore said after an awkward pause, “it’s a school of magic, called Hogwarts.”

“Yeah, I got the letter,” he said, causing Dumbledore to blink in surprise. 

“Did you?” he said quickly recovering, “You must have questions then.”

“Nope,” said Hadrian popping the p, “I’m good. I already got all my school supplies and I can get to the train station just fine. Also, I prefer to go by Hadrian. Hadrian Peverell.”

The two just sat and stared at each for a couple minutes.

“If that’s all professor, I’d like to be left alone.”

He waved his hand and opened the door with wandless magic. Dumbledore continued to stare at him before rising to his feet. 

_ “Quick, tell him you can speak to snakes.” _

“Professor,” called Hadrian and Dumbledore turned back to him, “I can talk to snakes. Is that normal?”

Dumbledore seemed to pale slightly, but smiled.

“There have been others with that ability.”

Hadrian nodded and Dumbledore left.

_ “What was that about?” _ he asked Death.

_ “Just reminding the man about another student of his who grew up here.” _

_ “You mean Tom Riddle? He could speak to snakes?” _

_ “Yes, it’s called parseltongue, those who can speak it are parselmouths. Salazar Slytherin had the ability and it passed though his line to Tom Riddle. You’re also a parselmouth, but you’re not related to Slytherin.”  _

Death appeared in his room.

“The old man’s gone. Let’s go,” Hadrian took his hands and they returned to the Leaky Cauldron. 

“You only have a few more days before you have to leave for Hogwarts,” said Death, “and I want to show you something before you leave.”

Death took on the appearance of a tall, thin man with jet black hair and pale eyes wearing fine black wizarding robes. The two left the Leaky Cauldron and Hadrian was surprised to see that they were leaving Diagon Alley. The street seemed to become darker and the wizards looked less cheerful and wore darker colors. 

“Welcome to Knockturn Alley,” said Death, “this is the area you want to go to purchase things of a darker nature.” 

Death lead Hadrian into a bookstore and they purchased books on dark magic.

“It’s important to be well balanced when it comes to your magic,” said Death, “the whole idea of light and dark magic is mostly just a mortal concept, though it is true that some people are better are performing one or the other.

“You have an advantage. Your natural magic leans towards the light, since the Potter family is a light family. But the reaper part of your soul will help you to perform dark magic quite naturally.” 

They left the bookstore and went to a shop that sold dangerous looking animals and body parts. Death purchased several different types of snake venom for Hadrian then brought him over to a tank with a snake.

“Talk to it,” said Death, “parseltongue will come naturally to you.” 

_ “Hello,”  _ said Hadrian feeling slightly foolish talking to the snake, but the snake lifted its head and looked at him, its tongue flickering out. 

_ “You speak the serpent tongue?” _

_ “Yeah, is it rare?” _

_ “I have never met a speaker before,” _ the snake’s tongue flicked out again,  _ “you smell of death.” _

Hadrian chuckled and glanced over at Death who was on the other side of the store looking into a cage.

_ “You have no idea.” _

He left the snake and Death brought him back to the Leaky Cauldron.

“You’ll have to learn parselmagic,” Death told him, “it’s powerful and can’t be undone by anyone other than parselmouths, and there aren’t many. Probably the only one you’ll ever encounter is Riddle, or possibly if you ever have children of our own they might inherit it.”

Death left Hadrian at the Leaky Cauldron to practice the language of the dead.

The last few days of  summer quickly came to an end and Hadrian packed up his trunk, eager to go to Hogwarts. Death brought him to the platform where an old fashioned red steam engine was waiting.

Hadrian couldn’t help but grin at the sight of the Hogwarts Express and Death laughed at his enthusiasm.

“Go on,” said Death, “and sit with someone, make friends. We won’t be able to speak face to face for a little while, but you can contact me whenever you want.”

Hadrian boarded the train with his trunk and Hedwig and found a compartment. They had arrived early so most people hadn’t gotten there yet. 

Hadrian pulled out a book and began reading. He knew he should listen to Death and try to make friends, and he would, just not right now.

The train pulled out of the station right on time and Hadrian grinned. He was finally on his way to Hogwarts. A little while later he was interrupted by his compartment opening. A girl with brown bushy hair and large front teeth already wearing her school robes stuck her head in.

“Have you seen a toad?” she asked him, “Neville’s lost his.”

“No,” said Hadrian, “I haven’t, sorry.”

The girl shrugged and was about to leave when her eyes landed on his book. 

“Is that on the required reading list?”

“No,” answered Hadrian, “it looked interesting, that’s all.”

The book was on ancient runes, which was a Hogwarts subject students couldn’t take until their third year.

“Could I borrow it when you’re done reading it?” the girl asked.

“Sure,” said Hadrian, “but this is kind of advanced. He pulled down his trunk and opened the compartment with his library and pulled out another book on runes and offered it to the girl. “I’d recommend starting with this one. It gives a good introduction to ancient runes, unless you’re already familiar with the subject?”

The girl shook her head taking the book and holding it gently, as though afraid of breaking it, “I’m not familiar with runes. I just found out that I was a witch this summer and I’ve been trying to read as much as I could. I hope I’m not behind everyone else.”

“I’m sure you’ll do fine,” said Hadrian.

The girl grinned and clutched the book to her chest.

“I’m Hermione Granger.”

“Hadrian Peverell. Do you want help looking for the toad?”

Hadrian followed Hermione into the hall and while she went to another compartment to ask about the toad, Hadrian did a wandless summoning spell, and was grateful when only one toad appeared. Death was right about toads not being a popular pet. He picked up the toad and walked up to Hermione.

“I think I found the toad,” he told her and she grinned, “Where’s Neville?”

They quickly located Neville Longbottom, a short, slightly chubby boy with dirty blond hair who was relieved to get his toad, Trevor, back. 

All three went back to Hadrian’s compartment after Hermione and Neville grabbed their stuff. 

They had just sat down in the compartment when the door opened again and the blond boy, Draco Malfoy, from the robes shop ran in and slammed the compartment door behind him, slightly out of breath.

“Oh, it’s you,” Draco said, spotting Hadrian, “I was wondering where you were.”

He sat down on the seat next to Hadrian.

“Is everything alright?” Hadrian asked.

“I’m fine,” said Draco, “I’m just trying to avoid Crabbe and Goyle. Their fathers are friends with my father, but the two are complete idiots. They can barely string two sentences together.” 

Hadrian laughed and then introduced Neville and Hermione to Draco. He could see that Draco was surprised that Hadrian was with them, since the Longbottoms were a known light family and Granger was obviously a muggle name. But he didn’t say anything, for which Hadrian was grateful for. He didn’t want to get into a conversation about wizard blood status. 

Hadrian steered the topic of conversation towards school and classes.

“Have you thought about what house you want to be in?” Draco asked Hadrian. 

_ “What house should I be in?” _ he directed the question to Death. 

_ “All of the houses have their strong points. Though everyone will expect Harry Potter to end up in Gryffindor like your parents. Slytherin would be the biggest surprise since it’s considered a dark house and many may consider you a dark wizard and it would gain you the most attention. If you don’t want that, you’d do better in Ravenclaw. It’s not as light as Gryffindor or as dark as Slytherin, won’t gain you quite as much attention and they value knowledge.”  _

“I think Ravenclaw sounds like a good fit,” he said after thinking over Death’s words and what he knew about the houses.   

“Ravenclaw isn’t a bad house,” said Draco, “it’s better than Hufflepuff.”

“I’ll probably end up in Hufflepuff,” muttered Neville, clutching a miserable looking Trevor. 

“Nothing’s wrong with Hufflepuff,” said Hadrian shooting a look at Draco and Hermione nodded in agreement.

“I bet you’ll end up in Ravenclaw with me,” Hadrian said to Hermione who just shrugged.

They chatted for the rest of the trip and Handrian pulled out a beautiful stone chessboard that had been a birthday gift from Death and they played games of wizards chest. When the trolley came by Hadrian bought enough sweets for everyone.

They were quickly approaching Hogwarts and Hermione stepped out of the compartment so the boys could change into their school robes. 

The train came to a stop and they all filed of the train and joined up with the other first years.

He was finally at Hogwarts.


	6. Chapter Six

“Firs’ years this way!” came the booming voice of an enormous man with a wild, scruffy looking black beard.

 _“Is that the half-giant?”_ he asked as he approached the man with his classmates.

_“Yes, Rubeus Hagrid. The current groundskeeper. He was expelled from Hogwarts for a crime he didn’t commit, but Dumbledore allowed him to stay on the school grounds. He knew your parents.”_

Hagrid led the first years to the edge of a lake where there were boats waiting for them.

“Four to a boat,” he called as he got into one, taking up the entire space by himself.

Hadrian, Draco, Hermione, and Neville got into a boat together and it began moving on its own. He sent a silent question to death about this.

 _“Merpeople,”_ replied Death.

Hadrian watched in just as much anticipation as his classmates as they neared the great castle, which towered above them surrounded by mountains, all its lights twinkling as it was reflected in the lake.

“Duck!” called Hagrid as the boats entered a small tunnel. They climbed out of the boats and Hagrid led them up a small grassy hill to the front doors. He knocked on the great wooden doors and after a second they opened.

“Firs’ years for you Professor McGonagall,” said Hagrid.

“I’ll take them from here. Thank you Hagrid,” answered a female witch whom Hadrian couldn’t make out.

 _“It’s the cat woman,”_ said Death.

 _“Cat woman?”_ he asked as he walked into a large entrance way.

 _“Minerva McGonagall,”_ answered Death, _“She’s an animagus, a cat. I do believe that when her time comes, in the distant future, I shall reap her myself.”_

_“Really?”_

Hadrian knew that this was a rare occurrence.

_“Yes, cats are frightening. They come closer to piercing the Barrier than any other creature. Any witch or wizard whose animagus form is cat should be respected. And feared.”_

Hadrian examined Professor McGonagall as she began talking about the school houses and how everyone must behave. She was dressed in emerald robes and a tall pointed hat cocked to the side. She was tall and her dark hair was pulled back into a tight bun. Hadrian thought that she looked rather stern, but he vowed to do his best to stay on her good side, or least off her radar as much as possible considering who he was.

Professor McGonagall left them after her speech and after a few moments nervous conversation began to break out among the students. Even Draco, who had seemed very self assured and confident that he would be placed in Slytherin, was looking slightly pale. Poor Neville looked ready to faint.

Hadrian was glad Death had told him about the sorting process as he heard a redheaded boy saying that he had heard you have to fight a troll as part of the sorting ceremony.

Suddenly there were gasps of shock and a few short screams as a group of floating, pearly white translucent people appeared, going right through the stone wall.

_“So that’s what ghosts look like. I can see the difference.”_

The ghosts appeared to be arguing about something, but stopped at the sight of the first years.

“Ah, welcome to Hogwarts!” greeted one of the ghosts, beaming.

 _“The Hufflepuff ghost,”_ supplied Death, _“he goes by the Fat Friar.”_

_“What’s his real name?”_

_“Err…”_

_“You don’t know?”_

_“I don’t bother learning the name of every soul that has ever wandered the earth. Besides, I’m not very fond of ghosts, and they don’t like me either. They don’t belong here and they know it.”_

The Fat Friar suddenly shrieked when his eyes landed on Hadrian and he fled the room. The other ghosts looked over curiously before they turned and fled.

 _“See?”_ said Death sounding slightly smug.

Hadrian had to stifle his laughter as the students looked around uncertainly, none of them certain what the ghosts had seen to scare them.

Professor McGonagall chose that moment to return and she lead them into the Great Hall. The Great Hall was just how it sounded, the room was huge, filled with four long tables, one for each house, and one table for the professors at the front of the room. Candles floated above the tables and Hadrian wondered what spell was used to prevent any hot wax from dripping down onto the students.

The best part of the Great Hall though was by far the ceiling, which was enchanted to look just like the sky. Currently it was covered with stars, not a cloud in sight.

Hadrian heard Hermione telling Neville behind him about how she had about the ceiling in _Hogwarts, A History._

He turned to look at the girl and gave her a grin.

“I’ll definitely be seeing you in Ravenclaw.”

At the front of the room Professor McGonagall had brought a stool with an old wizards hat on it. To Hadrian’s amusement the hat burst into a song about the houses. When the hat was done singing he could see many of his classmates relaxing as they realized that all they would have to do was put on the hat.

McGonagall being calling names from a scroll alphabetically by last name. Hadrian watched with only mild interest as the other students were sorted. Though he did watch as Hermione was sorted into Ravenclaw and then Neville was sorted into Gryffindor.

When Draco was called the hat barely touched his head before yelling Slytherin and Draco walked to the green and silver table, grinning smugly.

“Potter, Harry,” called McGonagall, causing a hush to fall over the hall. Hadrian made no move to step forward.

“Potter, Harry,” McGonagall called again as whispers broke out over the hall as students wondered where the supposed savior of the Wizarding World was.

“Potter, Harry!” called McGonagall, an edge of impatience creeping into her voice.

“Professor,” called a voice from the teachers’ table. It was Dumbledore, “perhaps you ought to try calling Peverell, Hadrian.”

McGonagall frowned up at Dumbledore for a moment before calling, “Peverell, Hadrian.”

Hadrian stepped forward and sat on the stool. He could see confused stares and hear whispers and then the hat was on his head, blocking out all noise and covering his eyes.

“Interesting,”whispered a voice in his head.

“Indeed,” replied Hadrian, “Do they have to renew the spells on you each year or do you always remain animate?”

The Hat chuckled, “Never had I expected to come across a student with the title of Master of Death.”

“In title only,” said Hadrian in a slight teasing voice, “tread lightly, Death is no doubt listening in and has made it clear that he has no master.”

“Let’s see, what’ve we got…” said the Hat, “brave, but cautious, you do not push your friend to the limits to protect you. You are loyal, but only to Death; you would make a better leader than a follower. You are not too overly ambitious, though you are cunning. Your one true ambition is to gain knowledge.”

“I think I can figure out where this going,” said Hadrian, “and I approve the choice.”

“Then it better be Ravenclaw!”

Ravenclaw was shouted out to the hall and he walked to the table among slightly confused cheers. He wondered if it would have gone completely silent if he had been placed in Slytherin.

He sat down with the other first year Ravenclaws and across from Hermione. After the sorting was completed Dumbledore made his announcement about the third floor corridor being out of bounds, which really? A painful death? This was a school, what exactly did the man keep here? He might just have to look eventually since after all, it wasn’t like he could die.             

 _“And here I thought that you weren’t recklessly brave,”_ said Death, _“the Hat even agreed.”_

_“Is it something I couldn’t handle?”_

There was a moment of silence before Death’s reply.

_“It’s nothing you couldn’t handle.”_

Hadrian was broken out of his conversation by Hermione.

“Why didn’t you say that you’re Harry Potter?”

He shrugged one shoulder as he began filling his plate with food.

“I don’t go by that name anymore,” he replied, “never actually have since my parents died. I debated about going by my birth name when I came here, but I decided that the last thing I want is the fame attached with the name. I know I’ll get some of it, but hopefully it will lessen it some. Plus, I’m just used to Hadrian Peverell.”

Hermione nodded at the explanation and they began eating. The other first years introduced himself to him. There was Anthony Goldstein, Lisa Turpin, Mandy Brocklehurst, Michael Corner, Isobel MacDougal, Padma Patil, Sue Li, and Terry Boot.

Hadrian mostly listened to their conversation as he ate, though he caught multiple people staring at him throughout dinner, including one of the professors. A man in black robes with shoulder length black hair and pale skin. He was talking to a man in a turban when he turned. Hadrian met the man’s gaze for a moment, but a second later he felt a stabbing pain in his scar, but it quickly faded.

After the meal, a couple of prefects, Penelope Clearwater and Robert Hilliard lead the Ravenclaws to their common room.

On the way out of the Great Hall they walked past the Gryffindors and Hadrian caught Neville's eye. He stepped away from the Ravenclaws and walked next to him for a moment to talk to him.

“Sorry I didn’t tell you that I’m Harry Potter,” he told him, “but I didn’t lie to you about my name. I’ve grown up going by Hadrian Peverell, not Harry Potter, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

Neville grinned at him looking slightly revealed that Hadrian hadn’t been intentionally lying to him or trying to fool him.

“I’ll see you around,” he told Neville before jogging to catch up with the Ravenclaws.

He knew he would have to catch up with Draco and give him an explanation as well.

The prefects led them to the west side of the castle on the fifth floor. Out of the way and slightly hidden was a door with a knocker in the shape of a bronze eagle. The door had no handle or keyhole.

“This is the entrance to our common room,” Penelope told them, “to get in you will have to answer a riddle. If you are unable to answer the riddle, you will have to wait until someone comes along who can.”

She turned to the knocker and the eagle turned its head to her and spoke:

_My life can be measured in hours,_

_I serve by being devoured,_

_Thin I am quick,_

_Fat I am slow,_

_Wind is my foe._

A candle thought Hadrian.

“A candle,” said Penelope and the door swung open and they all filed through the door and up a narrow spiral staircase into the common room.

The room was located in one of the towers and was wide and circular. It had graceful arched windows and the cream colored walls were draped in blue and bronze silks. There was a domed ceiling that was painted with stairs and the midnight blue carpet also had stars. There were lots of tables, chairs, and bookcases spread throughout the room. A white marble statue of Rowena Ravenclaw stood next to a door which he assumed led to the dormitories.

Penelope led the girls to their dorms and Robert led the boys to their dorms. The dorm room was circular and contained four beds with blue covers and drapes. Their trunks were already in front of their beds. Hadrian’s bed was the closest to the door.   

 _“You should visit Dumbledore,”_ said Death.

_“Why?”_

_“He has something of yours. The piece of my cloak given to your ancestor. He also has the Elder Wand which belongs with you, but you will have to wait to get it. Dumbledore will not just part with the wand and as far as he knows you have no claim over it, while the cloak does belong to you through your father. And I don’t feel comfortable with the man having two of my Hallows.”_

   He left the dorm room under the pretence of examining the common room. From there it was easy to slip out as people continued to chat with friends they hadn’t seen since the year before and headed towards the dorm rooms.

Death directed him towards the headmaster’s office which was located behind a gargoyle.

_“It needs a password, but parseltongue will make it open.”_

_“Open,”_ hissed Harry, picturing a snake, and the gargoyle moved aside to reveal a spiral staircase.

 _“Is Dumbledore in the office?”_ he asked Death.

_“No, he is in the teachers’ lounge. Everyone is curious about you.”_

Hadrian unlocked the office door and entered. The room was filled with bookshelves and tables covered in strange trinkets. A phoenix sat on a perch, watching him with intelligent eyes. Paintings of past headmasters covered the walls and Hadrian immediately noticed that something was wrong. All the paintings were completely still as though they were muggle paintings rather than moving wizard paintings.

 _“I have froze them temporarily,”_ explained Death, _“Use your magic to sense the cloak.”_

Hadrian allowed his magic to spread through the room, searching. His magic hit something that buzzed with power and reminded him of Death and he went to Dumbledore’s desk to retrieve it. He easily unlocked the drawer and pulled out the cloak which was a silvery material that felt smooth and silky in his hands.

He glanced up and noticed that the phoenix was still watching him.

“I’m only taking what’s rightfully mine,” he told the bird before pulling the cloak over himself, rendering him invisible.

He left the office and made it back to the door to the Ravenclaw common room and removed the cloak.

The knocker turned to him.

_I drive men mad_

_For love of me,_

_Easily beaten,_

_Never free._

“Gold.”

The door opened and Hadrian returned to his dorm and slipped into bed after changing and pulled the drapes closed. He ran his hands over the cloak as he examined it.

_“So how does this work; is there anything that can detect me when I’m wearing it?”_

_“The cloak will make you undetectable from any spells and protect you from most spells, excluding the Unforgivables. You will have to use silencing charms to hide sound and you must be aware of scents. Also, be wary of cats._

_“The cloak will also allow you to fly.”_

_“Really?”_

_“Really. Though none of your ancestors figured that out. Also, run her hands around the edge, you’ll find a small ridge. Pull on it and a hood will unfold so you can wear it as a proper cloak.”_

Hadrian ran his hands around the edge and found the ridge and pulled out a hood just as Death said.

_“You can manipulate the power of the cloak so you can wear it as a normal cloak and remain visible, and then turn invisible at will.”_

_“Cool.”_

_“Indeed.”_

Hadrian locked the cloak in his trunk and then went to bed, putting a sticking spell on his drapes. When he fell asleep he had odd dreams where he was wearing a turban like the professor he had seen at dinner wear and the professor with dark hair and pale skin watched him as he struggled to remove it.

Suddenly the dream disappeared like mist and he was sitting on a stone ledge which he realized was the Great Wall of China. Death sat next to him.

“What was that?” he asked.

“Something interesting that you should think on, but not now.”

Death spent the rest of the night drilling Hadrian on the language of the dead, though Death promised to give Hadrian a small break once classes started until he fell into a routine. The rest of the night was uneventful, though Hadrian couldn’t help but feel that Death wasn’t telling him something.


	7. Chapter Seven

The next day Hadrian was the first one up in his dorm. He felt strangely well-rested and took a long shower before getting dressed. He stood in front of the mirror trying to do something about the mess on his head that he called hair.

He was about to give up when the mirror shimmered and a blonde woman with green eyes appeared. He raised an eyebrow at Death.

“Need some help?” she asked.

Death raised her hand and reached out of the mirror causing the surface to ripple like water. Her hand combed through his hair for a moment and then retreated back into the mirror. She moved to the side to allow Hadrian to see his reflection.

“Wow,” he said staring at his hair. It looked, dare he say it, good. It was finally tamed and lying flat with a slight wave to it. It swept over his forehead just enough to cover his scar.

Death smiled at him, “There’s not much I can’t handle. Question.”

“Yes?”

“How fond of your glasses are you?”

Hadrian shrugged, “I like being able to see.”

Death reached out of the mirror again and took his glasses off. Hadrian blinked and found that everything remained clear. His vision was as good as it was with his glasses, hell, it was even better.

“There,” said Death grinning, “a new look for the next chapter of your life.”

“Thanks Alice,” said Hadrian walking out of the bathroom.

“Don’t chase any white rabbits!” Death called out after him and he grinned.

His roommates were just waking up when Hadrian left the dorms. He caught sight of bushy brown hair as he entered the common room.

“Good morning Hermione,” he said walking next to her as they left the common room.

“Hello,” said Hermione, “Where are your glasses?”

“I don’t actually need glasses, I was just wearing them because they used to belong to my father, but I decided that I already look enough like him without further reminding people of him since the teachers would have known him,” he easily lied.

Hermione nodded and grinned at him before telling him about how she started reading his book on runes the night before and found the subject to be fascinating and that she was almost finished with it.

They arrived in the Great Hall and sat at the Ravenclaw table. The Great Hall was mostly still empty but students were slowly filtering in.

Hadrian poured himself a cup of tea and spread strawberry jam on a piece of toast as he continued to listen to Hermione talk, making a few comments every now and then. He found her enthusiasm both amusing and refreshing.

He noticed Neville enter the hall and glance between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables uncertainly before glancing at them. Hadrian waved him over and he sat down next to him.

“Hey Neville,” Hadrian greeted him, “How’s life as a Gryffindor treating you?”

“Alright I guess,” he said with a shrug, “I didn’t think I would get into Gryffindor, though that’s where my parents were.”

Death had told Hadrian about Neville’s parents and how the prophecy could have been about Neville.

“I’m sure you’ll do great in Gryffindor,” Hermione assured him and Hadrian nodded.

He looked over at the Slytherin table looking for Draco, but he didn’t see the blond. Maybe Draco wasn’t a morning person.

As breakfast ended he checked his schedule and headed to Charms with Hermione which was taught by their head of house, Professor Flitwick. Flitwick started with roll call and and he fell off his stack of books when he got to Harry Potter and Hadrian had to request to be called Hadrian Peverell once Flitwick had recovered.

His next class was transfiguration and he was grateful when Professor McGonagall addressed him as Mr. Peverell. They had the class with the Slytherins and Harry grabbed Hermione’s arm and dragged her over to where Draco was sitting.

“Hello!” Hadrian said cheerfully flopping down into the seat next to Draco. Draco just stared ahead, ignoring him.

“Oh, come on, don’t be like that!” said Hadrian pouting.

“You lied to me,” grumbled Draco.

“No, I didn’t. My name is Hadrian Peverell and I can’t remember ever being Harry Potter. I don’t want people to judge me by something they think I did as a baby. Forgive me for not telling you?”

Draco continued to look forward for a moment before finally turning to look at him.

“Fine, I forgive you.”

Hadrian grinned as Professor McGonagall started the class. She was discreet about it, but Hadrian could feel her eyes on him. Just like Charms they did nothing but theory and he was bored out of his mind. He knew all of this already and how to do the magic behind the theories.

After Transfiguration it was lunch. Hadrian didn’t hesitate to sit with Draco at the Slytherin table and Hermione sat down right next to him. Neville came over and sat down, looking uncertainly at the other Slytherins.

The Slytherins kept looking at them, some with suspicion or confusion, others with outright hostility. Hadrian ignored the looks and focused on Draco telling him about his favorite Quidditch players.

After lunch Hadrian and Hermione headed to History of Magic along with Neville who also had the class. Hadrian was looking forward to the class, not because of the subject, since he had been taught by Death who had overseen literally all of history, but because the class was taught by a ghost.

Cuthbert Binns had taught History of Magic for many years before he fell asleep in the teacher’s lounge and died. The next day his ghost left his body and he went to class and continued teaching. As far as Death could tell the only reason he stuck around was to continue teaching.

The three of them got seats in the front row and Professor Binns floated straight through the chalkboard into the classroom. He opened his mouth to talk, then his eyes widened and he fled the room making a strange choking noise.

 _“Shit, I didn’t think this through,”_ thought Hadrian as the students around him burst into confused conversation.

“What happened?” asked Neville.

“He, he just fled!” said Hermione in disbelief.

The classroom door opened and a beautiful curvy witch in bright scarlet robes with long black hair in loose curls and dark blue eyes walked in briskly. She went to the front of the room and everyone immediately went silent.

“Sorry about that everyone,” she said with a smile, her voice had a musical quality to it, “let’s begin.”

“Bloody hell,” whispered the redhead behind Hadrian.

Hadrian stared in disbelief at the witch, trying to hide his shock. She met his gaze briefly and then Death gave him a wink before launching into a lesson about the Hogwarts’ founders.

_“What are you doing?”_

_“Giving your classmates a proper History of Magic lesson. Binns does nothing but drone on about goblin wars anyway. His ghost will probably be stuck here until he manages to become a good teacher, which won’t happen anytime soon. The man can make anything sound boring.”_

Hadrian was glad when the lesson was over, though he noticed that his classmates seemed to have enjoyed it. He waved goodbye to Neville and then walked to the dungeons for potions with Hermione and the other Ravenclaws. Potions was taught by the man who had seen staring at him at the feast. His name was Severus Snape and he was Draco’s godfather. He was also a past Death Eater turned spy for Dumbledore.

The potions classroom was dark and cold and made Hadrian long for the greenhouse where Death had taught him how to brew potions. Snape wasn’t there yet so Hadrian took a seat at a bench next to Hermione and near his housemates. They had the class with the Hufflepuff first years.

Snape came into the room, his black robes billowing behind him and all conversation died down. He began the class with roll call and he paused when he arrived at Harry Potter.

“Ah yes,” he said, “if it isn’t our new _celebrity_.”

“Excuse me sir,” said Hadrian politely, “but I prefer to be called Hadrian Peverell.”

Snape’s lips seemed to twitch for a moment as though he were going to say something but thought better of it. He finished roll call before addressing the class.

“As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through the human veins, bewitching the minds, ensnaring the senses... I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, and even stopper death - if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach.”

 _“Nothing can stop Death for long,”_ said Death with a strange note of pride.

Next to him Hermione was sitting up straight looking determined, as though eager to prove that she wasn’t a dunderhead.

“Potter!” snapped Snape suddenly, “What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?”

Hadrian was startled for a moment as the meaning of the words clicked in his brain. Next to him Hermione’s hand shot into the air.

“I prefer Peverell and the answer is a powerful sleeping potion called the Draught of Living Death.”

In his head Death snorted at the name.

“Where would you look if I tell you to find me a Bezoar?” snapped Snape.

Next to him Hermione continued to raise her hand, but Snape ignored her.

“The stomach of a goat,” answered Hadrian, “It’s a stone and will save you from most poisons.”

“What is the difference between Monkshood and Wolfsbane?”

Hadrian wasn’t starting to get annoyed and Hermione looked ready to start jumping up and down.

“Hermione knows the answer Professor,” but Snape just narrowed his eyes and Hadrian let out a small sigh. “They’re the same plant. It also goes by Aconite.”

“What is the name of the world’s strongest love potion?”

“Amortentia.”

“What is the most common use for dragon’s blood?”

“It’s used as an antidote for mild poisons.”

“What would you use on cuts and abrasions?”

“Murtlap Essence.”

“What is a side effect of a Felix Felicis overdose?”

“Giddiness.”

“What colour is Shrinking Solution when brewed correctly?”

“Acid green.”

The questions went on and on and Hadrian was beginning to think that Snape was going to spend the entire class drilling him when he finally stopped and had the class get into pairs to make a potion to cure boils.

Hadrian worked with Hermione who he quickly realized knew what she was doing from reading the potions book, but needed to work on technique. He gave her some pointers on how to properly prepare some of the ingredients and together they worked quickly and efficiently and were the first to finish.

“Have you made potions before?” asked Hermione when they were done.

“Yes, I have a friend who taught me,” said Hadrian, “She would take me to this greenhouse and teach me about the plants and how to make potions from them.”

“Potter, Granger,” growled Snape stepping up behind their bench, “why aren’t you working?”

“Peverell,” said Hadrian automatically, “and we’re finished.”

“Well, don’t just sit there looking smug, go help your classmates.”

Hadrian and Hermione both got up to help the other students. Most of the Ravenclaws seemed to know what they were doing so they mainly focused on helping the Hufflepuffs.

“I said help, not do it for them,” Snape snapped at Hermione who was demonstrating the correct way to cut roots to a pair of Hufflepuff girls, and causing her to turn bright red.

Hadrian was already getting tired of Snape’s behavior and it was only day one.

At the end of class Hadrian stayed behind to talk to Snape, telling Hermione he would meet her in the library.

“Do you often talk in the language of flowers?” he asked approaching Snape’s desk, “Or did you just really not want me to understand?”

Snape just stared at Hadrian, so he continued.

“In Victorian flower language, asphodel is a type of lily meaning ‘my regrets follow you to the grave’ and wormwood means ‘absence’ and symbolizes bitter sorrow. If you combined that, you get ‘I bitterly regret Lily's death.’”

Snape just continued to stare at him.

“Lily, my mother. I regret her death as well. I know you were friends and I’m sorry for your loss, for I feel that it was your loss even more than mine since I never truly got to know her, or my father.

“Which brings me to my next point. I am not my father. I may resemble him, but I don’t act like him and doubt I ever will. That’s not how genetics work, but if you want to keep thinking that way, then that means I have just as much of a chance to be like my mother. Which I also doubt. So I would really appreciate it if you could stop looking for either of my parents in me.

“Also, your message sounded like an apology, so I accept your apology. Have a good day.”

Hadrian left the potions classroom before Snape could get a chance to respond. He asked Death where Draco and Neville were and then invited them to join him and Hermione in the library.

Hadrian finished his potions paper and chatted with Neville about plants. Neville’s favorite subject was Herbology and Hadrian wished that he had the class with the Gryffindors so he could work with him.

They went to dinner together and sat at the Slytherin table again, and once again Hadrian noticed people staring at them. This time people from other houses had noticed as well.

Hadrian watched out of the corner of his eye as a burly Slytherin fifth year got up and walked towards them, his eyes on him, Hermione and Neville.

“This is the Slytherin table,” he told them, his voice rough and gravely, “no mudbloods or blood traitors allowed.”

Both Neville and Hermione stiffened and Neville looked ready to bolt. Hadrian glanced at the older Slytherin for a moment and raised an eyebrow.

“I assure you, there is not a problem with anyone’s blood here. I’d recommend you apologize and walk away know,” said Hadrian not even bothering to look up from his meal.

The Slytherin boy’s eyes narrowed and he stepped closer to Hadrian.

“Get lost,” he growled, “your kind isn’t welcome here.”

“My kind?” said Hadrian turning to face the boy head on.

Draco must have seen something dangerous in Hadrian’s eyes.

“Just leave it, Bole,” he hissed, “no one cares about your blood supremacy.”

Bole glared at Draco, “Who would have thought a Malfoy would stick up for this trash.”

“I’m not my father,” said Draco, anger entering his voice.

“I believe I told you to apologize Bole,” said Hadrian his voice steady and calm, “and despite the fact that you’re obviously an idiot, no doubt from all the inbreeding your family has done to keep your blood ‘pure,’ I think you can handle that much. Or do I need to use smaller words? I’m willing to accommodate.”

Bole’s fist was hurling towards Hadrian’s face before he even finished talking and on pure reflex he threw up an invisible shield. Bole’s fist was halted mere centimeters from Hadrian’s face as it hit the invisible barrier.

“Oh good,” said Hadrian, “you’re smart enough to recognize the fact that you’ve been insulted.”

Bole tried to hit Hadrian again just to have his fist hit his shield again.

“But apparently not that smart.”

When Bole leaned back to throw another punch, Hadrian sent a small amount force at him causing him to stumble forward. He grabbed the table with his right hand, but it landed in a dish of mashed potatoes and he fell onto the empty section of bench next to Hadrian. And Hadrian may have caused the mashed potatoes to fall off the table and hit Bole on the head.

“Are you guys finished eating?” Hadrian asked them standing up and the others did as well. He could feel Dumbledore's eyes on him as they left. They made it out of the Great Hall before Hermione turned on him.

“What did you do?” she demanded.

“The absolute minimum that he deserved,” replied Hadrian.

“You did it right in front of the teachers!” she exclaimed, “Do you want to get expelled?”

“He won’t be expelled,” said Draco, “no one got hurt. Bole is fine, really, he was asking for it.”

“He was asking for a lot more,” said Hadrian, “but I’m not so stupid as to do more than that in front of the teachers, who I did not forget were watching. Let’s just go find something to do. I’ve been wanting to talk to Hagrid, he’s the groundskeeper. He knew my parents.”

Hadrian led them out of the school and across the school grounds to a small hut near the edge of the Forbidden Forest. They had a couple hours before curfew so they had plenty of time to talk to Hagrid.

Hadrian knocked on the door and a dog started barking.

“Fang, get back!” Hagrid yelled from inside the house, “Just a second!”

Then the door was opened and Hagrid appeared holding the collar of an enormous boarhound.

“Hi Hagrid,” said Hadrian, “hi Fang. I don’t know if you recognize me, but I’m Hadrian Peverell, though you would have known me as Harry Potter. I was hoping we could talk.”

Hadrian beamed at the sight of Hadrian and invited them in, managing to hold Fang back until they were in the house.

Hagrid poured them tea and put out a plate of rock cakes.

“It’s nice to see you Harry,” said Hagrid, “I mean, Hadrian. Sorry.”

“It’s alright. I know it will take some getting used to,” said Hadrian with a smile. Death had told him that he may wish to get to know Hagrid and be on his good side. “These are my friends, Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger, and Neville Longbottom.”

Fang had gone over and put his head on Draco’s lap and the blond began rubbing the dog’s head.

“The last time I saw you, you were just a babe,” Hagrid told Hadrian, “you could fit in my hand.”

“We were flying, right?” asked Hadrian, even though he already knew the answer thanks to Death.

“Yes, I drove you in a flying motorcycle,” said Hagrid.

“Cool,” said Hadrian. Maybe he would work on enchanting a motorcycle to fly, though he could already hear Death complaining.

Next to him Neville was attempting to eat one of Hagrid’s rock cakes and from the difficulty he was having with it, it appeared to be an actual rock. He took it from Neville when Hagrid wasn’t looking and passed it to Draco who feed it to Fang.

They talked to Hagrid about their first day of classes before heading back to the castle.

“I’m covered in dog drool!” cried Draco looking down at his robes. Hadrian laughed. “My robes are ruined!”

“Fang _likes_ you!” taunted Hadrian.  

“Shut up you prat!”

“Neville agrees with me, right Neville?” Hadrian slung his arm around Neville’s shoulders and Neville grinned at him as Hermione laughed.

“I hate you all,” said Draco, “I just met you and I already hate you.”

Hadrian made a heart with his hands.

“I know you mean love!”

“I most definitely do not!” Draco yelled back.

Hadrian grabbed Draco and wrapped his arms around his neck and gave him a wet kiss on the check.

“Why you little-!” Draco made a grab for Hadrian, but he took off running towards the castle and Draco took off after him.

He could hear Hermione and Neville laughing as Draco began to catch up.

“Shit you’re fast!” he yelled as Draco jumped forward and tackled him around the waist knocking him down.

They began rolling around and wrestling on the ground. Hadrian struggled to get up as Draco dragged him down. He held out a hand. “Neville help me!”

Neville grabbed his hand and Hadrian pulled him down with him.

“Really boys?” said Hermione with her hands on her hips.

“You could join us Hermione!” called Hadrian.

“I think it would be best if she didn’t,” said McGonagall. Hadrian looked up to see the witch standing in the doorway to the school. “Come along.”

The boys clambered to their feet, Hermione helping Neville up.

“Sorry Professor,” said Hadrian as they entered the school.

‘Whatever for Mr. Peverell?” she asked raising an eyebrow, “I was just ensuring that you didn’t stay out past curfew. You four best be heading to your dorms.”

“Thank you Professor,” said Hadrian with a grin and they headed to their dorms, Hermione and him waving goodbye to Neville and Draco as they headed to the Ravenclaw common room. The knocker turned at their approach.

You throw away the outside

and cook the inside. Then you eat the outside

and throw away the inside.

What did you eat?

“An ear of corn,” said Hermione and the door swung open for them. Hadrian said goodnight to Hermione and headed to his dorm room.

 _“You’re making friends fast,”_ commented Death as he got ready for bed.

_“Jealous that you’re no longer my only friend?”_

_“Not at all, you’ll need friends. They will help keep you human. Now go to sleep.”_

_“Yes boss.”_

Hadrian grinned as he pulled the covers around him and fell asleep almost instantly.


	8. Chapter Eight

The next day Hadrian’s first class was Defense Against the Dark Arts and he was looking forward to it, or at least he had been until Draco told him about the class, which he had had the day before. 

When Hadrian walked into the classroom he was hit with the stench of garlic. Now Hadrian had no problem with garlic, he liked it, but this made his eyes water. Blinking, he moved to sit in the front of the room with Hermione. 

Professor Quirrell was a young man with pale skin and light blue eyes. He wore a purple turban that Hadrian suspected was the source of the garlic smell. There was a twitchiness to him and he stuttered his way through attendance. When he got to Harry Potter, Hadrian didn’t bother to raise his hand. Eventually after the name was called multiple times he asked Quirrell to call him Hadrian Peverell. He was beginning to think that it would have been easier to just go by Harry Potter so that he wouldn’t have to keep correcting people. 

After Quirrell finished attendance Hadrian raised his hand and Quirrell stared at him in surprise for a moment before calling on him. 

“Professor, I was wondering what makes something dark or light magic.”

This was something that Death never seemed to be able to answer in a way that satisfied him. Death would always tell him that magic was magic, and that the distinctions were created by humans and that the being wouldn’t even try to begin to understand their methods. 

“Excuse me?” asked Quirrell, but there was something different about him. His voice had changed, and it wasn’t just the lack of a stutter. 

“What’s the difference between dark and light magic?” asked Hadrian.

“The Ministry determines what is dark magic and what isn’t it. Most people consider curses and hexes or spells that can hurt people as dark arts.”

“The dark arts are evil!” cried a Hufflepuff girl and Hadrian saw many of his classmates nodding in agreement.

“But what determines that they are dark arts; doesn't how they are used affect the classification, since not all dark magic is curses and hexes. What about weather magic? Convens used to control the weather to help with crops and even affected the weather for Quidditch matches, but one group used it to harm muggles and suddenly the entire art was called dark magic and it was outlawed. Wouldn't magic like that be better regulated rather than outright banned? 

“I mean, there is lots of magic that is considered light that could be used to hurt people. I read in a few books that it has to do with emotion and will, but isn't that all magic? After all, something like transfiguration won't work unless you are capable of willing something to become something it is not. Yet it is considered light magic. What is the real difference?”

Everyone was staring at him when he finished talking and Quirrell was giving him an odd look. Quirrell opened his mouth as though to answer, but then he seemed to change and began telling the class about how he got his turban. Hadrian tuned the words out and looked through the Book of the Dead which he had transfigured to look like the Defense textbook. 

After Defense was herbology taught by Professor Sprout. Hadrian liked the greenhouses and new he would be spending a lot of time in them. 

That day was also the first years first flying lesson. They all walked across the grounds to where Madam Hooch was waiting for them. 

“Come on,” she called, “stand next to a broom.” 

Hadrian stood between Draco and Neville. Draco looked confident and slightly smug, Neville looked like he was either going to faint or throw up. 

Madam Hooch instructed them to yell ‘up’ at their brooms to call it to their hand. Hadrian grinned when his broom went flying into his hand on the first try. Draco got his a moment later, but Hermione’s kept rolling over and Neville’s didn't move at all. 

Next they were instructed to mount their brooms and kick off on the count of three and hover for a moment before coming down. Hadrian mounted his broom and wrapped his hands around the handle as instructed. It was an older model broom and appeared to be well used with several bristles bent.

“On my count,” called Hooch, holding up her whistle. “One, two-”

Before she got to three Neville kicked off and took off into the air with a noise of alarm.

“Longbottom!” yelled Hooch, “Get down here!”

“He’s going higher!” said Draco.

“I don't think he can get down,” said Hadrian. 

Neville continued to fly higher before suddenly his broom tipped back and he slipped off. Hadrian raised his hand without thinking and slowed Neville's descent so that he landed on the ground with a small thump, unharmed. Hadrian felt everyone's eyes on him as he approached Neville and helped him up.

“You alright?” he asked offering his hand which Neville took. 

“I’m fine,” Neville was staring at Hadrian with wide, stunned eyes. “How did you do that?”

Hadrian shrugged, “I don't know,” he lied, “it must have been accidental magic.”

He made sure to talk loud enough for everyone to hear.

“Well,” said Hooch managing to recover herself, “very good, Potter. Ten points to Ravenclaw.”

“Thank you,” said Hadrian, “but it's Peverell.” 

He walked with Neville and rejoined Hermione and Draco. They continued the class and Hadrian could feel his classmates’ gaze on him and he could hear them whispering. The rest of the class was uneventful and they did little in the way of actual flying which disappointed Hadrian. He really wanted to experience flying on a broomstick to see what it was like. 

The last class of the day was astrometry, which Hadrian found incredibly easy. He had spent many nights sitting on the roofs of shops in Diagon Alley with Death pointing out constellations and telling him the stories behind them. 

The next day was Friday and Hedwig swooped in at breakfast with a letter for Hadrian. He was surprised, who would send him a letter? He gave Hedwig some bacon after taking the letter from her and opened it. Next to him Draco was opening a tin of sweets from his mother.

“Hagrid wants us to visit again for tea and tell him about the rest of our week,” Hadrian told the others and they agreed to go on their break that afternoon. 

Hadrian had double potions and him and Hermione once again had no problems making the assigned potion. Snape’s behavior hadn't changed, but he did address Hadrian as Peverell, which he considered a win.

After lunch they had a break for the rest of the day so they headed down to see Hagrid. After Hagrid managed to pull Fang away from the door to let them in he served them more tea and rock cakes. Fang went over to Draco immediately who groaned at the glob of drool that landed on his robes.

Hadrian noticed a newspaper clipping from the  _ Daily Prophet _ on the table and leaned over to read it. 

“Someone robbed Gringotts?” he asked, “I thought that was impossible.”

“Yeah,” said Hagrid, “the goblins are furious.”

“I heard about that,”said Draco, “nothing was stolen, the vault had been emptied earlier the same day.” 

“What are the chances of that?” commented Hadrian and he noticed that Hagrid looked slightly uncomfortable. 

They continued to talk with Hagrid about their classes before heading back to the castle. Hermione and Draco were bickering about something, Hadrian wasn’t really sure what it was about this time since they constantly went back and forth on any subject. Hadrian leaned over towards Neville, “Is it just me, or do they sound like an old married couple?”

Neville laughed, “They kind of do.” 

Hadrian paused on their way back to school, “Wait, I have an idea!”

“Oh no,” said Draco, “I have a bad idea about this.”

“Quidditch!” cried Hadrian.

“Told you,” said Draco.

“We’re not allowed to use broomsticks outside of lessons,” said Hermione, “we’ll get in trouble and expelled.”

“Only if we get caught,” said Hadrian, “come on, my father played Quidditch so I want to try, like really try, not what we were doing in lessons. Join me or not, it’s your choice.”

Hadrian took off for the Quidditch field and he heard the others following him. He went to the Quidditch storage area and unlocked it with a wave of his wand.

“I’m not sure this is a great idea,” said Neville nervously as Hadrian searched through the brooms looking for one that was in decent condition. 

“We’re going to get caught,” said Hermione, checking over her shoulder as though expecting to see a professor standing there.

“No, we have time before curfew and from the air no one will realize who it is,” said Hadrian, “they’ll just think we’re older students practicing for tryouts if they see us. Now come on Draco, let’s see your Quidditch skills in action.”

“I don’t know, Peverell,” he said glancing at the broom Hadrian held out to him, “this seems like a bad idea.”

“Really?” asked Hadrian raising an eyebrow, “Are you sure you’re not just scared?”

“Scared?” said Draco, “Of course not. You wish.”

Draco grabbed the broom and Hadrian and him both took to the air.

“Come down!” yelled Hermione, but both boys continued to fly. 

The wind blew through Hadrian’s hair and he let out a whoop of excitement as he continued to soar up. This was amazing! It was so different from when he went flying with Death. 

“Hey Draco,” he called, “you said you’re position is seeker right?”

“Yeah,” said Draco flying next to Hadrian.

“Well look what I’ve got.”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out the snitch he had grabbed from the trunk of Quidditch balls. Draco’s eyes widened as Hadrian tossed it into the air and it took off. “Let’s see who can catch it!”

Hadrian and Draco took off after the snitch which flew around the field. Suddenly the snitch darted out of the field going beyond the stands and it kept going.

“Shit,” hissed Hadrian leaning forward and urging his broom to go faster. He had assumed that there was already a spell on it that would prevent it from leaving the field, but apparently not. 

He raced after the snitch as it headed towards the castle. The snitch dove down and Hadrian followed it, skimming over the surface of the lake. He cautiously took one hand off his broomstick and leaned forward, but the snitch suddenly darted up and Hadrian gripped his broom, swearing under his breath, as he took off after it.

Draco made a grab for the snitch, but the thing seemed determined not to get caught and swerved away from his hand, continuing on towards the castle. They raced right next to the castle walls as they followed the snitch. Hadrian began to pull ahead of Draco and began to reach for the snitch again. He leaned forward so that he was barely holding onto his broom and he felt his hand close around the gold ball, it's wings beating frantically against his hand. 

He came to a halt and grinned down at the little snitch, then he glanced up and froze. He was hovering in front of a window of what appeared to be an office and staring out at him with wide eyes was Professor Flitwick. Flitwick reached forward and opened the window. 

“Come see me Mr. Peverell,” he said and Hadrian nodded. He began flying back to the Quidditch field and Draco joined him a moment later. Luckily the blond hadn’t been seen by Flitwick, so at least he wouldn’t get in trouble as well.

“What happened?” demanded Hermione seeing their faces when they landed.

“Flitwick saw me,” said Hadrian, “I need to go talk to him.”

He handed the broom and snitch to Draco who went to put them away, then began the long march up to the castle. He hadn’t even made it a week, and now he might be getting expelled. But if he was expelled, at least Death could still teach them, though he really wanted to stay at Hogwarts. 

He walked to Flitwick's office and knocked on the door before entering. He was surprised to see Flitwick was with another student. Flitwick introduced the student as Roger Davies, the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain. 

After the meeting with the two, Hadrian walked back to the Ravenclaw common room in a daze, barely listening to the riddle, but luckily he managed to still give the right answer. 

“What happened?” cried Hermione running up to him when he entered the common room.

“I’m on the team,” he said, still stunned.

“What?” asked Hermione.

“I’m on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team,” he told her, “I’m the new seeker.”

“Really?” she said in surprise, “You mean they rewarded you for breaking school rules? You should have been expelled!”

“Hey!” said Hadrian snapping out of his daze slightly, “Do you want me to be expelled?”

“Well, no,” said Hermione.

Hadrian stayed up and chatted with Hermione for a little while about ancient runes since Hermione had finished the book he had lent her. 

When he eventually went to bed he laid awake thinking about the Gringotts break in. Hagrid had acted strange when it was brought up, plus it was odd that he had bothered to cut the article out in the first place. Did Hagrid know what was in the vault, had he been the one to empty it? Hadrian’s thoughts kept going back to the stone. It would make sense after all. The only known Philosopher’s Stone was created by Nicolas Flamel, so it would make sense that that was the stone Hadrian had. Dumbledore had worked with Flamel, so it was a logical assumption that Flamel would ask Dumbledore to hold on to the stone for him, say in a certain third floor corridor. And who would want the stone? The best answer Hadrian could come up with was Voldemort. He could use the stone to create a new body. 

Hadrian decided that he would have to keep an eye on the third floor corridor, because even though the real stone wasn’t there, he wanted to keep an eye out for the dark wizard.

_ “Has no one realized the stone is a fake?”  _ he asked Death.

_ “No one knows,” _ replied Death,  _ “It’s a good fake, look who made it. The only way to know that it's a fake is to try and use it, and Dumbledore has no intention to. Which I have to give him and those protecting it credit. Few are able to resist using such an object for themselves.”  _

Hadrian was slightly disappointed that the third floor corridor just contained the stone. He had been looking forward to checking it out, but knowing that it was just the fake stone made him lose interest. 

He silently vowed to protect the real stone as he fell asleep and greeted Death in his dreams. 


	9. Chapter Nine

By the next day the entire school had somehow heard about Hadrian making the Quidditch team and people were staring at him even more. The teachers also stared at him, but it faded over time, though Quirrell continued to watch him.

Death continued to teach his History of Magic class, but after the second class he noticed something. As soon as his classmates left the room they seemed to forget that it wasn’t Professor Binns teaching them, and none of the others teachers seemed to know about the switch. Hadrian wasn’t sure what Death was doing, but whatever it was, it was working.

As he fell into the routine of classes, assignments, and Quidditch practice with Davies, Death began introducing more challenging spells and drilled him on the language of the dead and had him copy pages from the Book of the Dead into English and Latin.

When the next Quidditch lesson came around Hadrian was excused from it on the account that he was on the Quidditch team and so didn’t need the lessons. That morning Death told Hadrian that he would use the time to meet with someone to help him with necromancy. He waved to Hermione, Neville, and Draco and then followed Death’s directions and headed towards the side of the lake furthest from the school near the edge of the treeline. As he got closer he began to make out a figure facing out towards the lake.

It was a woman in a plain white dress. She had dark red hair that was waving in the breeze. Hadrian walked towards her and she turned and smiled at him and he froze. He recognized that face, especially the forest green eyes.         

“Mum?” he asked and ran the rest of the way. The woman smiled and held out a hand to him, but when he reached for it, his hand went straight through her. “What?”

“I’m sorry, Harry,” she said, “we can’t touch, but we can still talk.”

“How?” he asked staring at her, drinking in every familiar detail of her face, “What are you?”

“She’s not a spirit or a ghost,” said Death, stepping up next to him. Death had taken on the appearance of Amanda Parrington, the woman who had taken care of him when he first arrived at the orphanage. And looking between the two women now, Hadrian could see Amanda’s resemble to his mother. “She’s something in between. That night in Godric’s Hollow, Lily Potter was told to step aside, but refused. She could have lived, but she died trying to protect you. That’s powerful magic and her magic still protects you, because of it, Voldemort will be unable to touch you. It also connects her to you, and because of that connection I was able to bend the Barrier between the worlds to allow her temporary passage.”

Lily smiled at him and he found himself smiling back.

“Now remember,” said Death, “it’s only temporary, and she’s isn’t completely your mother. She is still similar to a spirit, with all her memories. And you can’t bring her back fully, this the closest you’ll get. Though once you get the Resurrection Stone you will be able to contact her and anyone else who has passed through the Barrier.”

Death disappeared then leaving the two alone. Hadrian stared at his mother, not sure what to do.

“You’re in Ravenclaw,” she said, brushing a hand above his blue and bronze colored tie, “I couldn’t be more proud, though your father would mock you endlessly about being in the house of the nerds, but he would be proud too.”

Hadrian laughed, “I guess he wouldn’t be wrong, we are a bunch of nerds. Though I did make the Quidditch team. Youngest in a century.”

“Now that is something your father would definitely be proud of,” said Lily, “I myself was never much of a Quidditch fan, but your father loved the sport. He was a chaser and became the captain of the Gryffindor team. He used to run his hands through his hair to make it look like he had just been flying.”

“And is that what caught your attention?” he asked with a grin.

“Oh no,” said Lily with a laugh, “your father definitely fell first. I couldn’t stand him for most of my time of Hogwarts. He was so arrogant and obnoxious, and he was full of himself, strutting around like he owned the school. Always getting into trouble.”

“What changed?” asked Hadrian.

“Well, he would constantly ask me out, and I always said no, and I had no problem telling him the reasons why I wouldn’t go with him. And eventually he changed, so I agreed to go out with him.”

Hadrian heard voices in the distance as people walked around the grounds on their break.

“Let’s walk in the forest,” he suggested. They walked though the trees which became thicker and thicker until most of the sunlight was blocked out, though Hadrian found that he could see just fine despite the dim light.

“I’m supposed to teach you necromancy,” said Lily, “it was part of the agreement Death made with me about meeting with you. As someone who has passed through the Barrier, I’m able to teach you even though I never practiced it in life.”

“Alright,” said Hadrian, “tell me what to do.”

“Open your sight and find a living creature, preferably something small, like a bird or a rabbit.”

Hadrian opened his sight as he was told and looked through the trees until he saw a small glow indicating a life force coming from a crow.

“Got it,” he said and Lily nodded.

“Good. Now what do you know of the killing curse?”

“It’s one of the three Unforgivable Curses. The incantation is Avada Kedavra, in Latin it means ‘I destroy as I speak,’ contrary to abracadabra, which means ‘I create as I speak.’ The motion looks like a lightning bolt like my scar. It is unblockable, so shield charms won’t defend against it. It’s a painless and instantaneous death and was originally used to kill livestock without damaging the meat and for euthanization. The Wizarding World also believes that I’m the only person to have ever survived the curse, but that’s not true. No one has ever survived it.”  

“Correct,” said Lily, “now I want you to use it on the crow, but watch it’s life force carefully, and as it begins to depart from its body, I want you to reach out with your magic, grab it, and put it back in its body.”

Hadrian pulled out his wand and pointed it at the crow, “ _Avada Kedavra_.”

Green light the same color as his eyes came from his wand and bathed the forest for a moment. The crow fell to the ground, dead, its body rapidly cooling. Hadrian saw the glow of its life force leave its body and he immediately directed his magic towards it, urging it to grab onto the energy, and then shoved it back into the crow’s body. The crow jumped up with a squawk and flew away.

“Good,” said Lily, “you must work fast for this to work, or the body will become to old and the life force will not be able to take hold again. This method works for animals, but with humans it creates inferi.”

“They’re like zombies right?” asked Hadrian.

“Sort of,” said Lily, “an inferius is a dead body that has been reanimated. Though they aren’t quite the same as the muggle zombie. Though they resemble zombies they are like puppets, bound to perform the bidding of the wizard who reanimated them. The best way to defeat them is with fire.”

Hadrian nodded, “Inferius means ‘underneath or below’ in Latin with the connotation of being lesser than a living human. While inferi means dead or underworld.”

“They are the closest to bringing back the dead any wizard has ever gotten. They are also the first thing anyone thinks about when they hear necromancy and they’re why the Ministry has forbidden the art. Though necromancy is more than just reanimating the dead. Necromancy includes the ability to absorb and utilize auras, sense coming deaths and sense when someone actually dies, divination in the form of contact with the dead, the power to manipulate ectoplasm, which is a sub-power of astral projection and soul manipulation, and a lot more.”

Lily had Hadrian kill several other animals and capture their life force and bring them back.

“It’s the first step in manipulating auras as well as moving towards creating inferi,” she explained, “as you learn to manipulate auras, you will be able to capture them and add them to your own power supply. Has Death told you what happens to a witch or wizard’s magic when they die?”

“It escapes back to the environment,” said Hadrian and Lily nodded.

“Yes, but with practice you will be able to collect the magic after someone dies. You can use it to fuel your spells and with practice you can add it to your magic to increase it and you may even find that you have some of the magical abilities from the person.”

They continued to walk for a little while before Death reappeared and told Hadrian that their time was up, but he would be able to see Lily again soon. He said goodbye to his mum, not wanting to make a big deal out of, since he trusted Death that they would see each other again and he didn’t want to act as if this were truly goodbye.

He went back to the school and found Hermione and Draco once again bickering. Neville told him that Hermione had called Quidditch ridiculous, which had insulted Draco.

Later that night, after everyone had gone to sleep, Hadrian was still wide awake and was feeling restless. He pulled on his invisibility cloak and left the dorm room. He wandered the halls for a while, searching for hidden passages. He did find one behind a tapestry that went from next to the Charms classroom to a hall next to the trophy room. He looked through the trophies and found a Quidditch trophy of his father’s. He also found Tom Riddle’s award for service to the school.

He left the trophy room and found himself heading towards the forbidden third corridor. When he came to a locked door he unlocked it wandlessly with a wave of his hand and peeked inside. He immediately closed the door and relocked it. There was a giant three headed dog in the school. Whose idea had that been, and why the hell was it only being separated by a plain door that could be opened by a simple spell from any first year who bothered to read their textbook?

Now he at least new about the fake stone’s first defense. He had noticed that the dog was standing on a trapdoor and guessed that once you passed through the door there would be several other obstacles in place before one could even try to get the stone.  

He headed back to the common room deciding that was enough for one day.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you're not interested in reading the Samhain ritual you can skip it. I did my best to write it and hopefully didn't screw it up too horribly.

When Halloween came, the castle was filled with the scent of baking pumpkin pie and Hadrian was looking forward to the feast. So he was very disappointed when Death informed him that he would not be going. Death wanted him to perform a ritual for Samhain to honor the dead. Hadrian spent the entire day arguing with Death in his head, who eventually reluctantly agreed to allow him to go to the feast as long as he promised to perform the ritual afterwards.

That day was also the first time they got to actually perform magic in class. In Charms Flitwick had them levitating feathers. It was incredibly easy and he had his feather zooming around the room. Hermione also got her feather to float, but she was one of the only ones. Though there was an interesting moment when one of the Gryffindors, Seamus Finnigan, managed to make his feather explode in his face. Hermione attempted to help another Gryffindor, Ron Weasley, but the two appeared to do nothing but argue.

Hadrian was talking to Neville as they left the classroom when someone ran past them.

“Was that Hermione?” said Neville and Hadrian called after her, but she had disappeared into the crowd.

Hadrian went to his next class, potions, but Hermione wasn’t there. He finished his potion early and helped a few Hufflepuff girls salvage their potion which had started to eat through their cauldron.

He was walking to the Great Hall for the feast on his own, really hoping that Hermione would be there, when he heard footsteps behind him. Multiple footsteps, so definitely not Hermione. He turned around to find the fifth year Slytherin Bole flanked by a pair of Slytherins that Hadrian thought he recognized as the Slytherin beaters.

“Hello gentlemen,” he said as they surrounded him in the now empty hall. Hadrian noticed a group of Gryffindors hurrying to get away. So much for Gryffindor bravery. “What can I do for you?”

“You’re going to pay half-blood,” said Bole, pulling out his wand.

“Pay?” asked Hadrian, “I didn’t think I owed you money.”

Bole began to raise his wand, but Hadrian stepped forward and punched him in the nose. He felt the bones crunch under his fingers and blood spurted from Bole’s nose as he reeled back, dropping his wand as he lifted his hands to his face.

“Funny,” commented Hadrian, “you people who grew up with magic your whole lives never see that coming.”

He looked at the other two Slytherins, “Are you going to help get him to the hospital wing?”

But the two boys began to advance on him and Hadrian sighed.

“Fine, but you asked for it.”

He locked eyes with the boy on his left and pushed the image of Death’s true form into his mind. The boy reeled back and screamed in fright and collapsed to the ground clutching his head and sobbing.

Hadrian jumped back just in time to avoid being hit with red sparks from the other boy’s wand. He turned and swept the boy’s feet out from under him, causing him to hit the floor, hard.

He swept his hand at the first boy who was know sobbing, and removed the image of Death from his mind. The boy seemed to still as though trying to remember what had frightened him so much.

“Take your friends to the hospital wing,” said Hadrian and then left for the Great Hall.

When he entered the Great Hall it was decorated for Halloween with giant carved pumpkins, live bats, and the ceiling was showing a stormy sky despite the beautiful clear night that it actually was.

He joined Neville and Draco at the Slytherin table and was disappointed to see that Hermione wasn’t there. He was just telling Neville and Draco that he was going to go look for her when the doors to the Great Hall opened and in ran Professor Quirrell.

As he ran he kept stumbling and he was holding a hand up to steady his turban. The Great Hall fell silent as everyone turned to watch him run to the teacher’s table.

“Troll, in the dungeon,” he panted, “thought you’d want to know.”

He then promptly fainted and chaos erupted across the hall. Dumbledore had to make purple sparks fly out of the tip of his wand to gain everyone’s attention. Hadrian barely listened to Dumbledore tell everyone to return to their dorms and Draco’s cry of ‘The Slytherin dorms are in the dungeon!’ He was too focused on Dumbledore's wand. He could feel the power radiate off of it, similar to his cloak, but not exactly the same, as though they were made to complement each other. Which of course they were.

He was broken out of his thoughts when a frantic Slytherin first year bumped into him. He turned away from Dumbledore and headed towards the doors. He grabbed Draco and Neville and pulled them aside.

“We need to find Hermione and make sure she’s nowhere near the dungeons,” he told them, leaving no room for argument. He sent a silent question to Death and then took off for the girl’s bathroom.

For the second time that night he heard footsteps behind him and pulled Draco and Neville into the first classroom he saw. They watched as Snape walked through the hall, his robes billowing out behind him.

“Where’s he going?” asked Neville, “The dungeons are the other way.”

Hadrian narrowed his eyes slightly. He knew where Snape was going, question was, was he trying to steal it, or make sure no one else had. He sent a request to Death to prevent Snape from entering the room with the dog. He would figure out what the potions master was up to later.

“Come on.”

He took off down the hall again and the others followed him. He was hit by a horrible stench as he rounded the corner, like raw sewage and sweat. He caught sight of the troll entering a room. The thing was enormous and hideous with gray lumpy skin and it was dragging a club.

There was a scream and Hadrian didn’t hesitate to run into the bathroom. Draco and Neville skidded to a halt behind him as they stared up at the troll that had Hermione backed up into a corner.

Hadrian lifted a hand and sent a wave of energy rushing through the troll’s body, crushing all its bones to powder and liquefying its organs. The dead troll swayed on its feet for a moment before it began to fall forward. Hadrian halted its descent before it could hit Hermione and sent it crashing on its side so that none of them were crushed.

He ran around the troll and grabbed Hermione’s hand and dragged her out of the bathroom.

“We need to get out of here,” he told the others and took off for the kitchens which were located in the basement near the Great Hall.

“What happened to the troll?” asked Neville, and Hadrian realized that to the others it must have looked like the troll just collapsed.

“Don’t know, don’t care,” replied Hadrian tickling a pear in a painting of a bowl of fruit. The painting swung open and they entered the huge kitchen which was bustling with house elves.

A large group of house elves instantly surrounded them.

“What would sirs and miss be wanting?” asked one in a high pitched voice that was more of a squeak.

“Hot chocolate and pumpkin pie,” said Hadrian. A few minutes later they were sitting in the corner of the kitchen in front of the fireplace eating giant pieces of pie and sipping at hug mugs of hot chocolate topped with whipped cream.

 _“Aren’t you forgetting something?”_ asked Death.

_“What?”_

_“The ritual.”_

_“The ritual? But that was before Hermione was almost attacked by a troll!”_

_“A promise is a promise…”_

He sighed and put down his plate, “I’m going to go perform a Samhain ritual to honor the dead and my ancestors. Anyone want to join me?”

“When I was younger I used to do a ritual with my mother,” said Draco, “I’ll join you.”

“But isn’t the practice of Samhain forbidden?” asked Neville, “It’s considered dark magic.”

Draco huffed and rolled his eyes, “It’s not dark magic. That’s just the Ministry lumping everything that has to do with contacting the dead under necromancy. They want everyone to celebrate Halloween because the old holidays freak out the muggleborns who are ignorant of our culture. That’s part of the reason why so many purebloods hate muggle-borns. They destroy our history and traditions. No offense Hermione.”

“I never thought of it like that,” said Hermione with a small frown.

“But the old pureblood families hold their traditions close and don’t try to share or teach the information to muggle-borns,” pointed out Hadrian, “you guard the information like a secret, so how are muggle-borns expected to learn?”

This time it was Draco’s turn to frown. “I hadn’t thought of that,” he mumbled.

“Of course you haven’t,” said Hadrian with a grin as he lead them from the kitchen. He had collected everything he would need for the ritual that morning and had decided to perform it in the astronomy tower out on the balcony since it was such a clear night.

“Is there anyone you want to honor?” he asked them, “If there is, if you have a picture of them you should get it and you should write a few words about them on a parchment and roll it into a scroll.”

Hadrian waited as the others went to their dorms and got the items.

They were walking up the stairs to the tower when they ran into Snape heading down. They froze at the sight of the professor.

“What are you doing out of your dorms?” he asked, his lip curling into a sneer.

“We’re going to honor the dead,” replied Hadrian, “as I’m sure you’re aware during Samhain the Barrier is weakened, allowing for contact and sometimes even communication with the dead. You could join us professor. It’s a good time to honor my mother, after all, she did die on this night.”

Snape opened his mouth and then closed it, frowning. Hadrian just stared right back, waiting. Time seemed to drag on and he was aware of the others standing behind him looking ready to bolt.

“Alright,” said Snape eventually, though he sounded slightly reluctant about it. Hadrian grinned, he hadn’t actually expected Snape to join them.

They continued to the top of the tower and went out onto the balcony. It really was a beautiful night, the sky was clear and cloudless with stars spread out as far as the eye could see and a full moon lit up the area.

“I need a few minutes to set it up,” Hadrian told them and began pulling things out of his bag.

He swept the area and then sprinkled salt water for cleansing. A quick spell showed him the direction of true north and he drew a pentacle in chalk and enclosed it in a circle. Each point represented the elements, fire, earth, water, air, and spirit and enclosing it in the circle represented the elements being controlled by man through magic.

In the center of the pentacle he set up a small shrine that would work as their altar. He placed a small wooden table that he transfigured from a piece of parchment and covered it with a light blue cloth to symbolize spirituality, tranquility, peace and protection. He then placed a yellow candle to represent the Goddess and a white candle to represent the God, but didn’t light them. He added a censer and incense, not burning the incense.

He added a bowl of salt and a bowl of water. Then placed a large shell as a container to hold offerings. He added sage, sweetgrass, and some of the pie he had taken from the kitchen as offerings to the spirits of their ancestors, silently hoping that they like pie since he hadn’t been able to grab any food at the feast like he had planned to.

He sprinkled the shrine with water and salt, silently asking the God and Goddess to bless it. Then added pie crust soul cakes covered in dried fruits and drizzled with honey and a goblet of ale he had gotten from the kitchen that morning.     

Hadrian then turned to face the others. He placed Hermione on the point for water on the pentacle, Neville on earth, Draco on fire, and Snape on air. He took his place on the point for spirit. Hadrian would act as the high priest for the ritual. Preferably there would also be a high priestess, but he was going to have to perform the roles for both.

Death had gone over the ritual with Hadrian that morning and he paused as he recalled the words.

“We gather here tonight to celebrate the passing of the Old Year and to welcome in the new. We are here to celebrate Samhain, the final harvest, that time when the veil between the worlds is at its thinnest and those that have departed this world may return to it once more. Tonight we honor those who have gone before and may now return to us, tonight we honor our Mighty Dead.”

He lifted the bowl of water.

“I exorcise thee o Creature of Water and cast out from thee all impurities and uncleanliness. In the names of the Lord and Lady, so mote it be.”

He placed the water on the pentacle then picked up the bowl of salt.

“Blessings be upon thee O Creature of Salt; let all malignity and hindrance be cast from thee, and let all good enter within. Wherefore do I bless thee and consecrate thee in the names of Lord and Lady. So mote it be.”

He set the salt on the pentacle. He used his athame, a ceremonial blade with a black handle and used it to move three measures of the salt, or earth, into the water. “Thrice measured, thrice taken, thrice given. So mote it be!”

He picked up the candles and lit them silently with magic and placed them on the pentacle.

“Blessings upon thee O Creature of Fire, let all malignity and hindrance be cast from thee, and let all good enter within. Wherefore do I bless thee and consecrate thee in the names of Lord and Lady. So mote it be.”

He placed the incense on the pentacle.

“Blessings be upon thee O Creature of Air, let all malignity and hindrance be cast from thee and let all good enter within. Wherefore do I bless thee and consecrate thee in the names of the Lord and Lady. So mote it be.”

He lit the incense and then took the incense and walked around the pentacle deosil, or clockwise. He then picked up the salted water and walked around again sprinkling it around the perimeter.

Then starting in the east he began walking deosil three times, chanting, “I conjure thee oh circle of power, that thou may be a meeting place of love and joy and truth and as a shield against all wickedness and evil. Thou art a boundary between the world of mortals and the realms of the mighty ones; and an entryway to the realm of spirit. Wherefore do I bless thee and consecrate thee in the names of the Lord and the Lady. The circle is cast, so mote it be!”

He then looked to the East, “Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the East, ye Powers of Air; Spirits of Clear Will and Knowledge, I do summon, stir, and call you up, to witness our rites and to guard our Circle.

“Hail and welcome.”

He indicated for the others to repeat the words and drew over the point with the chalk.

He turned to the South, “Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the South, ye Powers of Fire; Spirits of Illumination and Desire, I do summon, stir, and call you up, to witness our rites and to guard our Circle. Hail and welcome.”

“Hail and welcome,” the others chanted as he drew over the point with chalk.

He turned to the West, “Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West, ye Powers of Water; Spirits of Death and Initiation, I do summon, stir, and call you up to witness our rites and to guard our Circle. Hail and welcome.”

He drew over the point as the others chanted, “Hail and welcome.”  

He then faced the North, “Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the North, ye Powers of Earth, Spirits of Mountain and Plains, I do summon, stir, and call you up to witness our rites and to guard our Circle. Hail and Welcome.”

“Hail and welcome,” they echoed as he drew over the point.

He returned to his point on spirit.

“I call to the Great God, Dread Lord of Shadows, the Horned One, Leader of the Wild Hunt. We ask you to be with us tonight and join us in our circle. Help us to understand the mysteries of the world beyond, and to feel the presence of those we honor as our Mighty Dead! The Wheel turns, from light to darkness and we ask for your blessings this night of the final harvest! Hail and Welcome!

“We call to you Great Goddess, Eternal Lady, Mistress of the Moon. Join us Great Crone as we celebrate the passing of the Old Year and the coming of the New. Great Lady, smile down upon us, illuminate us with your wisdom and grace. Allow us to draw close to those who both taught and lived the Craft! Stir our souls with passion and fire as we gather here tonight to celebrate the sacred Samhain festival. Hail and Welcome.

“I am the Dread Lord of Shadows, God of Death, Giver of Life, Keeper of the Gate through which all must pass. I am the Comforter, Counselor, Giver of Peace, and Rest and I bid you all to walk gladly and unafraid into my realms. Here in the Summerlands all are rested and refreshed among their dear ones, and then are ultimately reborn the grace of me and She who is Queen of the Dead and Mother of us all. By our love and wisdom all will be reborn near their beloved ones so all may meet, know, remember, and love them again.

“I stand at the end of all things, and the beginning of all that is new. I take, and I give. I am the spark of life and he who extinguishes all. I stand with you in this journey and will walk with you upon the next. I am he who gives release from pain and brings to you all that is pleasurable. I rend, I rip, I tear. I love, I lift, I embrace. Blessed Be.

“Now listen to the words of the Great Mother, the Lady of Death, who was once called Diana, Hecate, Kali, Ariadne, Persephone and by many other names.”

Now this was the difficult part, because this was when the high priestess was supposed to respond. Hadrian wasn’t sure what to do, but Death had told him to just continue with the ritual anyway. He opened his mouth to continue, but was cut off by a woman responding.

“I am she who is feared, yet she who would bring comfort. I am the end of all things and the beginning of all else. I would give you peace, freedom, and reunion with those who have gone before you. My gifts are rarely sought, yet freely I offer them. I am she who embraces every woman and every man. None shall escape my touch, but fear it not, for I hold the Cauldron of Life within my hands, the power of immortality for all those that would be reborn in your world.”

The words echoed around them and Hadrian saw the others look around for its source.

“I am feared, yet I am the balance in this world without end. Without me thou would not live again. I am the end of suffering, the release from all pain. I gather the spirits who have left your world and offer them a place in it once more. I am the mystery of the end, and the wonder of beginnings,” continued Death.

“And you who seek to know Me, know that your seeking and yearning will avail you not, unless you know the Mystery: for if that which you seek, you find not within yourself, you will never find it without. For behold, I have been with you from the beginning, and I am that which is attained at the end of desire. Blessed Be.”

“Tonight we call to the Mighty Dead, those in the Craft who came before us and shaped our Witchcraft today. Without the efforts of those we honor here tonight the Craft as we know it would most likely not exist, or perhaps exist in a much diminished form,” continued Hadrian.

“Upon this Samhain night we throw open wide the gates that lead to the world of shadow and invite those whose works and influence led us to this place tonight. Pagans and Witches all, we honor the Mighty Dead and ask them to look over this coven and to lend their energies to our rites, if they so wish.

“It is not our place to demand the attention of the ancestors or those who have taught the Craft. We only seek the Mighty Dead to honor them and to offer them a place in our rites. We gladly accept any aid they might give to us, and also accept that as spirits with loved and dear ones they may not always wish to be in this space.

“The names of those we honor tonight have all touched us in some way,” spoke Death, “Perhaps it’s a teaching they offered, passed down in books and tradition. For some it's the trail they blazed, breaking down boundaries and and bringing the Lord and Lady closer to anyone willing to look. There are many honored here tonight whose words we say in our rites and whose energies exist in our blades and hearts.”

Hadrian turned to the West and continued where Death left off.

“Hear us O Mighty Dead that we call this night! Know that we respect and honor you in our rites and only seek to further understand your mysteries. We offer you a place in our circle in perfect love and perfect trust with harm to none.

“Our ritual tonight is simple,” spoke Hadrian, “we have chosen several Mighty Dead to honor this night and place upon our altars. Here you shall find pictures of those individuals. On these scrolls are words about the individuals we honor. I’m going to have each of you walk forward and place your scrolls on the altar along with the picture of that individual upon our shrine so our Mighty Dead will know they are welcome.

“Every year when we gather in the late Autumn we will install more of the Mighty Dead upon this place of honor. Those that were lost to us this year will be placed here later so that they might have time to adjust to their new home. So come forward now and let us begin to honor our Mighty Dead.”

Hadrian stepped forward and placed a picture of his parents that he had copied from a book on recent wizarding events. Neville, Hermione and Draco each placed pictures and scrolls on the altar.

They stood in silence and Hadrian closed his eyes and breathed in the incense, allowing his mind to relax and empty. He could hear voices just on the edge of his hearing and felt strange energies moving through the circle.

He was not certain how long he stood there, but when he opened his eyes he felt as though he were coming out of a deep trance.

“The days grow shorter, the night grow colder, but the gods have not forgotten us. Life is ever present, even when the darkness grows. Life is more than a gift, it is a promise. All that dies shall be reborn. We now celebrate the most ancient of magics, the magic of joining. The athame is to the Lord as the cup is to the Lady. United in Life and abundance. Blessed Be! We now shall bless this bread and this drink as it was done in days of old, when Pagans and Witches were forced to hide their art. In the names of the Lord and Lady we bless these cakes.”

He touched the soul cake with his athame.

“In the names of the Lord and Lady we bless this drink.”

He touched the top of the cup with the athame. He then cut the cake and gave everyone a small piece and passed around the goblet of ale. Once everyone was finished began to end the ritual.

“We thank the Lady, the Great Mother, the Eternal Crone for being with us tonight in our circle. Remind us of your beauty and your love in the days ahead. Help us to find the strength to honor you as much in the darkness as we do in the light. Hail and farewell!

“We thank The Horned One, Dread Lord of Shadows, God of Birth and Death for being with us tonight in our circle. We thank you for opening your realm to us. As death comes to our lands, help us to remember that you are a god of beginnings as well as endings. The Wheel turns and as you sink down into the shadows we say to you Hail and farewell!”

He began to dismiss the Watchtowers in the opposite order of what they had been called.

“Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the North, ye Powers of Earth,, Spirits of Mountain and Plains, you have joined us in our rites and have guarded our circle well. We thank you for joining us this sacred night. Hail and farewell!”

“Hail and farewell,” echoed the others.

“Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the West, ye Powers of Water; Spirits of Death and Initiation, you have joined us in our rites and have guarded our circle well. We thank you for joining us this sacred night. Hail and farewell!

“Hail and farewell.”

“Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the South, ye Powers of Fire; Spirits of Illumination and Desire, you have joined us in our rites and have guarded our circle well. We thank you for joining us this sacred night. Hail and farewell!”

“Hail and farewell.”

“Ye Guardians of the Watchtowers of the East, ye Powers of Air; Spirits of Clear Will and Knowledge, you have joined us in our rites and have guarded our circle well. We thank you for joining us this sacred night. Hail and farewell!”

“Hail and farewell.”

Hadrian walked around the circle widdershins, counterclockwise, three times.

“I conjured thee oh circle of power as a meeting place to shield us against all wickedness and evil. Thou hast served us well, and now we undo this boundary between the world of mortal and those of the mighty ones. We seal forth the entry way from the realm of spirit. All will now be as it once was, and what was once here has been dismissed in the names of the Lord and the Lady. So mote it be!

“Another year has passed us and another year full of promise and hope stands before us. With the blessings of the Lord and Lady, the love of those around us, and the memories of those who have left us, we go from this sacred place knowing of the bounty yet to come in our lives. Merry, merry part, and merry meet again! And may the gods preserve The Craft!”

There was silence as everyone stood still, the air which had been thrumming with magic began to fade. Hadrian felt both drained and re energized and at peace with his magic.

“That’s it,” he told the others, “I’m going to clean up the circle. You don’t have to stay.”

He handed them their pictures and they left looking slightly dazed and Hadrian saw Snape looking at him strangely, as though trying to figure him out.

Hadrian packed up the items and scrubbed away the chalk with salt water. He burnt the offerings along with the scrolls and scattered the ashes in the wind.

He didn’t want to go back to his dorm yet, his mind felt too alive to sleep. He sat on the wall around the balcony, his feet dangling over the edge of the castle. He leaned back and looked up at the stars, silently identifying the constellations and recalling their stories.

The sky began to lighten and Hadrian realized that the sun was rising. No point in going to sleep now he thought standing and stretching. He made his way to the door, but as he walked inside he thought he caught something moving out of the corner of his eye, but when he looked he saw nothing. He walked inside and he swore that he caught a whiff of garlic.  


	11. Chapter Eleven

Up in the headmaster’s office Dumbledore was pacing the floor in front of his desk. Worry gnawed at his mind and he was beginning to question his course of action. But he knew he could not abandon it, things had to work out. After all, the boy was the chosen one whether he went by Harry Potter or Hadrian Peverell.

When he had left the young Harry Potter on his relatives doorstep he thought he was doing what was best for the boy. The boy deserved to be raised by his family and they were all he had. When the day came to send out the letters, Harry’s had been sent out by owl and shortly after they had received a reply saying that he would be attending Hogwarts in the fall.

Dumbledore had then sent Hagrid to talk to the boy, just to have him return and tell Dumbledore that Harry wasn’t at four Privet Drive, and in fact never had been. It had been easy enough to track the boy’s location, and to his surprise he was lead straight to Wool’s Orphanage, a place he hadn’t been to in years. He had hoped to never have to step foot in there again after the last time.

He could still remember when he first met Tom Riddle. He had rewatched the memory so many times in his pensive that he had every detail memorized. He had known right then that the boy was no mere child and that he would pose a threat to the wizarding world. And he had been right, though he wished he hadn’t been.

And now, when he looked at Harry Potter, all he could see was Tom Riddle. The entire first meeting had been like a horrible nightmare for him with how much Harry seemed like Tom. Every time he saw the boy he had to remind himself that he wasn’t Tom, that he wasn’t going to become a dark lord. He was in Ravenclaw, not Slytherin, and he had friends. Tom Riddle never had friends, the closest he came to friends were underlings.  

Harry Potter would destroy Tom Riddle and end the plague of death and misery Voldemort had brought to them. He had to, it was the boy’s destiny. But Dumbledore was still having doubts.

There was something off about Harry. First of all, he shouldn’t have known about magic, but yet he was entirely unimpressed about his display of magic and didn’t question that he was wizard. Though perhaps he had figured out that he had magic through bursts of accidental magic over the years. It wouldn’t be the first time he thought trying to ignore the fact that Tom had figured it out as well. That Tom hadn’t been impressed either, had simply acted as though he had confirmed his suspicions.

Perhaps Dumbledore would have been able to ignore all this if it hadn’t been for the cloak.

Someone had managed to get into his office without setting off any alarms and without being seen by any of the paintings and taken it right from his desk. He kept thinking that it couldn’t have been him, he was only a boy, but a part of him feared that he was just lying to himself. After all, Tom Riddle had once been just a boy.

But how could he have known about the cloak? Yes, it did technically belong to him and Dumbledore had been planning on giving it to him, but he shouldn’t have even known of its existence. And to make matters worse, he had seen the boy staring at his wand, the Elder Wand, at the Halloween Feast two days ago. It was like he was aware of what the wand was, though that also should have been impossible.

Dumbledore was broken out of his thoughts by the sound of a clock chiming six. It was time for the staff meeting with the teachers. Every year he held the meeting just like every headmaster before him had. It was a chance for him to talk with the teachers and them among themselves about the students, especially the first years, who by now had had plenty of time to settle down and were beginning to move away from theory and starting to learn how to perform proper magic and spells.

He went down to the teacher’s lounge where everyone had already begun to gather for the meeting. There were bottles and tumblers of whiskey on the table and it appeared that some of the staff had already indulged in a few glasses. He knew that this was Minerva's doing.

“Headmaster,” said Snape stepping up next to him.

“Severus,” he greeted the potions master with a grin, though Severus remained as grim as usual. “How are you?”

“I’ve finished looking over the troll,” said Snape.

“Oh good,” said Dumbledore, “and have you discovered what caused its demise?”

“It wasn’t too hard to figure out,” replied Snape, “considering that all its organs had been reduced to sludge.”

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows at this. That would require a powerful dark wizard to perform such a feat.

“Thank you for looking into it Severus,” he said with a nod before walking to the table and sitting at the head. The others noticed his presence and everyone clambered to sit.

“These past two months have brought to us a new bunch of children as well as the return of our older students. How are our returning students doing?” he asked.  

They chatted for a few hours before they got to the first years.

“Is there any first year who is particularly talented?” asked Dumbledore just as he had every other year.

Occasionally there would be a student with a talent in a particular subject who the professors would keep an eye on and help steer them towards careers and opportunities in that subject field. Severus Snape had been brilliant with potions, Minerva McGonagall had been talented in the area of transfiguration, and Lily Evans had been a genius with charms.

“Would you like to start Minerva?” he asked his deputy headmistress.

“I had one student who managed to turn his matchstick into a needle and back on the first try,” she said with a smile, “it was Hadrian Peverell.”

Flitwick chuckled, “And here I thought it was just my class. I had four students manage to levitate their feathers. Hermione Granger, Padma Patil, Draco Malfoy, and Hadrian Peverell. Everyone except Peverell only made their feathers hover above their desks, but Peverell's feather was soaring around the room. He’s polite about it, but I think that he’s bored in my class.”

“It’s the same with my class,” said Pomona, “I’m afraid that he’s bored. He seems to already know all about plants. He’s spent quite a bit of time down in the greenhouses along with Neville Longbottom. The two of them seem to be getting along.”

Dumbledore was glad to hear about the friendship between the two boys. Neville came from a light family and so should be able to steer Harry in the right direction. Dumbledore was also pleased with his friendship with Hermione Granger. The fact that he was willing to befriend a muggleborn said a lot. It appeared that his time at the orphanage hadn’t created a hatred of muggles and muggleborns like it had for Tom.

The friendship that did concern him however was the one with Draco Malfoy. Not only did the boy come from a long line of dark wizards and Slytherins, but his father had been a Death Eater. Despite claiming to have been under the Imperius Curse, Albus knew better than to believe that.

The conversation continued and was mainly dominated by discussion of Harry Potter, or Hadrian Peverell, a name that Dumbledore struggled to get used to. The young boy was described as a prodigy in all his classes. Dumbledore could only think of one other student who had been described that way.

After the meeting both Minerva and Severus stayed behind to talk to him. Severus hadn’t said much during the meeting, and hadn’t said a word about Hadrian. Quirrell had also been quiet.  

“What do you think Albus?” asked Minerva as she poured herself another tumbler of whiskey. “Do you know why he goes by Hadrian Peverell rather than Harry Potter?”

“I’m not sure,” said Dumbledore, “I would say that it was a name given to him at the orphanage, except Peverell is not a name muggles would give him.”

“Orphanage?” said McGonagall in alarm and Snape looked up in surprise.

“Yes, he was not raised by his relatives,” said Dumbledore, “He was raised in an orphanage, Wool’s Orphanage to be exact.”

Both professor’s eyes widened, recognizing the name.

“But he’s not Tom,” said McGonagall, “he may be talented, but we should expect that from the one prophesied to defeat Voldemort.”

Dumbledore smiled kindly at the witch, “I’m sure you’re right Minerva.”

Minerva left to finish grading papers, leaving Albus alone with Severus.

“You’ve been awfully quiet Severus,” he said, “What do you think of the boy?”

“He’s made every potion perfectly,” said Severus after a moment of silence, “and he’s not his father. Though he’s also not his mother. He also knows the old ways. On Halloween night he held a Samhain ritual.”

“A Samhain ritual?” said Dumbledore, “It’s unlikely that he would have learned such a ritual at Wool’s.”

“I agree,” said Severus, “the boy knows more than he should.”

“Indeed,” Albus sighed, “I don’t know, Severus. He’s not what I expected.”

“I don’t think anyone could have expected this,” replied Severus before bidding Dumbledore farewell and leaving him alone with his thoughts.

 

That night Hadrian put on the invisibility cloak and disappeared. He went over to the window in his dorm room and climbed out of it and dropped down for a moment before he began flying. The sensation from the cloak was similar to when Death had helped him fly in Gringotts, as though he were being carried through the air.

He flew over the lake towards the forest. He had been wanting to explore the forest more. He had had a few more lessons with his mum in the forest, but now he wanted to collect some potions ingredients. He had been using the potions kit in his trunk to work on trying to make new potions. Most of the plant ingredients he could get from the school’s greenhouse, but not everything. He had learned that some plants could only be grown in the wild, which surprised him since he knew that he had been growing the plants in his greenhouse back in London. One of the benefits of having access to Death’s very own garden.

He landed on the edge of the trees and made his way into the forest. He released the magic in the cloak making himself visible since it was difficult to cut the plants without damaging them when he couldn’t see his hands. He placed the plants in a basket and slowly traveled in deeper.    

As he continued walking he suddenly heard a noise. It sounded like someone in pain. He broke into a run and came across a small clearing. Lying in it was a unicorn, it's white pelt flecked with sweat and dust as it laid on its side breathing hard. It’s neck was covered in silvery blood.

He made a noise of alarm and ran to kneel next to the unicorn, but it jerked and tried to get away from him. It sensed Death on him he realized.

“No,” he assured the frightened animal, “it’s not your time yet. I’m not here to collect you.”

The unicorn seemed to relax and allowed him to stroke its flake. He examined the unicorn, but the only injury that he could make out was the cut on its neck, which shouldn’t be enough to cause this.

“I’m going to help you, alright girl?” he whispered.

He extended his magic to the cut and healed it, the flesh knitting together. He frowned down at the unicorn and opened his sight to look closer and was shocked to discover that the unicorn was dying, from blood loss. Something had drank the unicorn’s blood, and he could guess who that was.

Hadrian reached out and cast a net around the unicorn with his magic to keep the unicorn’s life force from leaving its body. He then sent magic into the unicorn. His magic slowly pulsed through the its body, urging it to heal itself, to replace the lost blood. When the unicorn’s blood returned to a healthy level Hadrian pulled back his magic.

The unicorn rolled over and got to its feet and stood before Hadrian and then dipped its head in what was unmistakably a bow.

Hadrian smiled and rubbed a hand along the side of the unicorn's head. “It was my honor,” he whispered.

“You know,” he said louder, “it’s not very polite to sneak around in the bushes.”

He turned to see a hooded figure step into the clearing. The unicorn made a small noise of alarm and stepped back.

“It’s okay girl,” he told her, “you can go.”

The unicorn seemed to hesitate, looking between Hadrian and the hooded figure before running off into the forest.

“So this is what happened to the great Lord Voldemort,” said Hadrian shaking his head as though disappointed, “drinking unicorn blood. For shame, don’t you know what type of life that will give you?”

“You know who I am,” he said, his voice low and raspy, he sounded suspicious and almost confused, “and you don’t seem surprised.”

“To be honest it makes sense,” he replied with a shrug, “you’re so weak, I bet the only thing that can keep you alive is unicorn blood.”

As he spoke he had spread his magic around him in a protective shield, trying to protect himself from the energy and magic coming off of Voldemort, but he felt pain spike through his head, originating in his scar.

Voldemort moved towards him and Hadrian lifted an arm, “I would go if I were you,” he warned, magic lacing his voice.

Suddenly Voldemort turned and Hadrian heard something moving in the trees behind him. Voldemort turned and fled into the trees as Snape stepped into the clearing. They stared at each other for a moment and Hadrian wondered how much Snape had seen.

 _“He saw all of it,”_ came Death’s answer, _“but he did not hear what you said.”_  

“What are doing out here Peverell?” Snape spoke slowly and with caution, his eyes flicking between Hadrian and the area that Voldemort had disappeared into.

“Picking plants,” he reached down and picked up his basket, “as I’m sure you know, some plants can only be picked at night.”

Snape’s eyes narrowed and Hadrian could see him trying to figure him out.

“Come along,” he snapped eventually and the two walked back to the castle, “You’ll be given detention.”

Hadrian nodded and then headed to his dorm room. He could feel Snape’s eyes on him the entire time.


	12. Chapter Twelve

Snape watched him closely the next few days and Hadrian knew that he had told Dumbledore what he had seen in the forest. Now he would just have to wait and see what they would do. They didn't know for sure that the figure was Voldemort since Snape hadn’t heard anything and Hadrian had done nothing to indicate who the figure was.

A few days later he had his first Quidditch match against Hufflepuff. He had ordered himself a Nimbus 2000 so that he wouldn’t have to use one of the school brooms and he loved how it handled. He enjoyed flying with the cloak, but he found flying on a broomstick to be more exhilarating.

He took into the air with his team and flew around the field keeping an eye out for the snitch as he watched the game. He flew near the Ravenclaw stands and caught sight of his friends. They were easy spot with Neville in his Gryffindor colors and Draco in his Slytherin colors. He waved to them as he flew past.

He caught sight of gold and went flying across the field and saw the Hufflepuff seeker do the same, but by the time he got there, the snitch was gone.

He knew that he could easily catch the snitch by using his sight to search for the snitch’s magical trail that it would leave behind, but that would be unfair against the other team, plus it was more fun to do it the traditional way.

He flew high over the field so he could have a good view of everything that was going on. He was hovering in place when his broom suddenly jerked. He grabbed the handle and stayed still trying to figure out what happened, but the broom remained still.

Hadrian urged his broom closer to the field cautiously when it gave another jerk, this time harder than the last and it kept going. It was moving beneath him as though trying to knock him off. He gritted his teeth and gripped it tighter as he tried to get lower, but the broom didn’t respond. If anything, it was going higher.

This was not right, there was definitely something wrong. People in the stands had taken noticed and were pointing to him, but he ignored them and concentrated on staying on his broom. The Nimbus gave another large jerk and he was sent flying off it, but he managed to keep one hand on it and was hanging on for dear life underneath it as it continued to jerk.

He wished he had his cloak with him. He should really work on enchanting it so that it would be invisible when he wore it and just start wearing it over all his clothes. Death was right he thought, he needed to practice flying more, he couldn’t just rely on the cloak.

 _“Told you,”_ whispered Death.

 _“Not now,”_ he growled as the broom jerked again.

Maybe he should just let go and slow his momentum down like he had for Neville when he fell. Even if he still hit the ground hard, it wasn’t like the fall could kill him.

 _“Well, it might kill you,”_ said Death, _“but it would be temporary.”_

Great, thought Hadrian, if he fell and died and someone realized that he was dead, then he came back to life, that would raise a lot of questions. Questions he would rather not have to answer.

There was one other thing he could try. The broomstick was clearly being tampered with; someone was hexing it. Probably someone right in the stands, in fact, it was definitely someone in the stands, since to do a spell like this they would need to maintain eye contact.

Hadrian reached out with his magic and wrapped it around the broom searching for the hex. To his surprise he sensed two different spells being used on his broom, from two different people. He opened his Sight to look closer and saw two strands of magic coming from the stands to wrap around his broom. One strand was a dark red and appeared to be attacking the enchantments on his broom, that would be the hex. The second strand was a silvery color, and was attacking the hex, trying to pry it away from his broom.

Hadrian slammed his magic and power behind the silvery strand, adding his strength to the spell and watched as it dissolved the hex.

His broom stopped moving and became still, hanging in the air. Hadrian swung himself back up onto his broom and looked to see where the magic had come from, but the strands had already faded, but it appeared to have originated from the teacher’s stand.

He closed his Sight and brought his broom lower, when he caught sight of gold and took off after it. The snitch dove down and Hadrian and followed, he wanted this game to end, now. He reached out for it as he drew level with the ground. He leaned over his broom so that he was barely on it and took both hands off the handle. He grabbed for it and felt himself go flying off his broomstick. He hit the ground hard, landing on his shoulder and rolled. He sat up, dazed and spit the snitch out into his hand.

Okay, so it wasn’t the most gracious catch, that was for sure, but he got it. He held the snitch up for everyone to see as Death laughed at him.

As soon as he finished changing he was surrounded by his friends.

“Hadrian!” yelled Hermione, “Are you alright?”

“I thought you were going to die!” yelled Neville, looking rather pale.

“You call that a catch!” yelled Draco.

Hadrian grinned at them, “I’m fine, I didn’t die, and I know, not my best catch.”

The four headed to Hagrid’s house for tea. Hagrid was relieved to see that Hadrian was alright.

“It was Snape,” said Hermione, once they got to Hagrid’s, “he’s the one who hexed your broom.”

“Snape?” said Hagrid, “Snape would never. He’s a professor, he wouldn’t hurt a student.”

“But I saw him!” said Hermione, “He was staring right at him, not blinking. You need to maintain eye contact for a hex.”

“It wasn’t Snape,” said Draco, “my godfather wouldn’t try to kill Hadrian. You agree with me, right Neville?”

Neville looked slightly uncomfortable, “I don’t know. I don’t know why he would do something like that, but Hermione is right about the eye contact.”

“It wasn’t him!” Draco groaned, then turned to Hadrian, “Do you know what Hermione was going to do? She was going to set Snape on fire.”

“On fire?” said Hadrian amused, causing Hermione to blush.

“He was trying to kill you,” she muttered.

“No he wasn’t!” cried Draco.

“I agree with Draco on this one Hermione,” said Hagrid, “Snape wouldn’t hurt a student.”

“I think there were two spells,” said Hadrian, “the hex and then someone was trying to counter it. That’s what allowed me to get back on my broom.”

“See!” cried Draco triumphantly, “Snape was trying to save him!”

“But who did it if it wasn’t Snape?” asked Neville.

That was a good question, thought Hadrian, plus he wasn’t going to entirely rule Snape out, not yet anyway. He stood up abruptly. 

“I have to go,” he told them, “I have detention.”

Hermione gave him another disproving look as he turned to leave. He had lied to them about his detention and said that he had lost track of time in the library and got caught out after curfew. He walked back to the castle and headed to the dungeons where he would have his detention with Snape. He was honestly surprised that all he got was detention. He knocked on the door of the potions classroom before entering.

“Hello Professor,” he greeted Snape, “What did you think of today’s Quidditch match?”

“I don’t care much for the sport,” he replied not looking up from the paper he was grading.

“It’s not for everyone,” said Hadrian, “but it was an interesting match considering someone tried to kill me.”

Snape looked up at this and stared at him.

“You’ll be scrubbing cauldrons,” he told him, “no magic.”

Hadrian walked over to the bench and began scrubbing the cauldrons.

“So why did you apologize,” said Hadrian suddenly after a couple minutes.

“What are you talking about?” said Snape.

“The first day of classes you apologized for my mother’s death,” replied Hadrian, “I know the two of you used to be friends. Was it just a general apology for the fact that she’s dead, or is there something more to it?”

When Snape was silent Hadrian kept talking.

“Did you do something when you were a Death Eater?”

This definitely got Snape’s attention, his head jerking up to look at Hadrian. Death had told him about Snape’s past with Voldemort and once he knew what to look for he could feel the magic around Snape’s left arm. It was different from Snape’s own magic and didn’t seem active, as though it were dormant. He knew that what he was feeling was the Dark Mark.

“How do you know about that?” he hissed, eyes narrowed. Hadrian shrugged a little.

“It doesn’t really matter how I know. The fact is, I do,” he said, “I know that you turned against him and become a spy for Dumbledore and if he were to return you would continue that role. But what happened before that?”

Hadrian waited in anticipation, he already knew the answer, but he wanted to see how much Snape was willing to tell him.

“I realized that your mother was in danger,” replied Snape, “so I went to Dumbledore and asked him to help protect her and agreed to become his spy.”

Hadrian nodded and went back to cleaning the cauldrons. He used silent and wandless magic to help his progress along.

“It was the prophecy right?” he asked, “You gave Voldemort what you knew about it and he figured out that it was either me and Neville.”

“You know about the prophecy?”

“Yes,” said Hadrian, “the faster you realize that I know a lot, the better this conversation will go. I know about the prophecy and that it came from Sybil Trelawney who has a history of making up predictions and supposedly had the prophecy during her job interview for the Divination position right here at Hogwarts. I know that according to the prophecy I’m supposed to defeat Voldemort.”

“How do you know this?” demanded Snape, frustration entering his voice.

“Still hung up on that are you?” said Hadrian, “I think we both know that I’m not just some other student Severus. I know that you saw more than you want me to know the other night.”

“What are you?” he said, rising to his feet.

“Hadrian Peverell,” he replied, “I’m something entirely new and entirely unexpected. And I’d like you to tell Dumbledore that I won’t be playing his games or playing the role of the savior because of some stupid prophecy by a woman who barely qualifies as a prophet.”

“So you plan on helping Voldemort?” hissed Snape reaching for his wand, but Hadrian sent it flying out of his hand with a flick of his wrist.

“That’s not what I’m saying at all,” he replied calmly, “you assume that there are only two options, dark or light, Voldemort or Dumbledore. But I’m not on either side. They may be two sides of a game, but I’m working with the gamekeeper and I can lend my aid to whomever I wish.

“And at the moment I will help Dumbledore by keeping the Philosopher’s Stone out of the hands of Voldemort. Because yes, I know about that as well, and I don’t want to see the return of an insane dark lord anymore than he does.”

He flicked his wrist and sent the now clean cauldrons flying into the cabinet and then left. He went straight to the library deciding that he needed to do some research. He needed to know the exact goals of both sides in the last wizarding war before he could decide what his next move was. He may not want an insane Voldemort running around, but he knew that Tom Riddle didn’t start out that way.  

As he entered the library he walked straight into Professor Quirrell.

“Sorry Professor,” he said jumping to the side, “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

“I-it’s qu-q-quite a-a-alright,” said Quirrell, placing a hand on his turban which was know lopsided. Hadrian continued past Quirrell into the library.

Nothing made sense, the other night when he ran into Voldemort the wizard had made no move to kill him and had fled when Snape arrived. Yet someone, most likely Voldemort or one of his followers, had tried to kill him today in front of almost the entire school.

 _“That’s because there is no sense to it,”_ said Death, _“Voldemort is now truly insane, nothing but a tiny sliver of soul clinging to what would barely be considered life. He has his moments where he is more rational and finds you fascinating, but he also views you as a threat and in moments of anger and insanity wants you dead.”_

 _“What would happen if he used the stone to regain life?”_ asked Hadrian.

_“He would gain a body, but nothing else would change. His soul will still be fractured and his mind will remain the same as it is now.”_

Hadrian sighed, then he was right to protect the stone. That was not the Voldemort he wanted running around.

 _“But you want Voldemort to return?”_ asked Death.

 _“I don’t know,”_ replied Hadrian, _“I don’t think I’ll have much of a choice about it either way. He will find a way eventually with or without the stone. And when he returns I want him to return as the Tom Riddle before Voldemort.”_   

 _“Alright,”_ said Death, _“then you should work on collecting the pieces of his soul and reunite them.”_

_“I can do that?”_

A boy with dark brown hair wearing a Hufflepuff tie walked over to him and stood next to the table Hadrian was sitting at.

“You can once you learn soul magic,” said Death, “which is a branch of necromancy. The gathering of souls is something that very few can do. But you can do more than just gather souls, you can reap them. Come with me.”

Hadrian followed Death to an empty courtyard and he sent up silencing spells around them and an illusion so that if everyone saw them they would just see two students reading.

Death held out his hands and a black scythe materialized. The scythe was tall and fit the typical idea of what people pictured the Grim Reaper wielding. The blade itself was black metal and hadrian could see flickering movement within in it.

“This is the reaper's scythe whose power you hold,” said Death, “you will be able to wield it and you can use it to remove Voldemort’s soul fragments from their vessels.”

Hadrian took the scythe from Death, “Very original.”

Death laughed, the sound like dead leaves rustling in the breeze.

“It’s your weapon, it can be whatever you want it to be.”

Hadrian extended his magic to the scythe and found that it reacted to him immediately. He shaped and transformed the scythe into a stiletto style dagger that was long and slender and came to a needle like point and a thin cross-section. The blade was the same dark metal with strange movement within its depths.

“Very nice,” said Death, “the weapon of an assassin.”

“So, what, I just carry this around with me?” he asked.

“No,” said Death, “you store it within your soul.”

“What?” said Hadrian, “What the hell does that mean?”

“The blade is an extension of you, a physical manifestation of your power, which is why no one else can wield it,” explained Death, “think of it as a part of your magic. You can extend your magic unto the environment and pull it back into your core and you can do the same with the blade.”

Hadrian nodded and wrapped his magic around the blade, and then pulled his magic back into his core along with the blade, causing the blade to disappear.

“By accepting the blade, do you know what that means?” asked Death.

“No,” said Hadrian.

“It means that you can start working with the reapers,” said Death, “they’ll be able to teach you more about how to wield your weapon.”

“Can’t you teach me?” asked Hadrian.

“I could,” said Death with a shrug, “but I don’t actually use any type of weapon or scythe, despite popular images, that’s all reapers. Plus, you are the Head Reaper, so it’s about time you stopped slacking and started working with the reapers.”

“Alright,” said Hadrian with a sigh, one more thing to do.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

The weather quickly turned cold as winter approached. Hadrian signed up to stay at Hogwarts over the Christmas break. Though death assured him that he could leave anytime he wanted since the wards that prevented apparition on school grounds could do nothing to prevent the comings and goings of Death, and therefore Hadrian.

After saying goodbye to his friends Hadrian went to the forbidden forest to have a lesson about necromancy with his mother. He would meditate with her and focus on his soul leaving his body in the form of astral projection. So far he had managed to enter the bodies of small animals and control them, but he had yet to manage to keep his soul outside his body for long. 

The castle was mostly empty when he returned since the majority of the students had gone home for the holidays. He stopped by the third floor corridor to check on the dog, but if anyone had tried to get by him, he couldn't tell.

He was walking to the library when he saw Hagrid walking towards the castle dragging a huge pine tree behind him. Hadrian waited for Hagrid to enter the castle.

“Hello Hagrid,” he greeted the half-giant, “how many trees does that make?”

“Not sure,” said Hagrid, “I’ve lost count.”

Hagrid had been dragging in trees for the past couple of days and then Flitwick would decorate them. 

“How’s Fang?” Hadrian asked politely.

“He’s good,” said Hagrid, “though he’s taken a real shine to Draco. I think Fang misses him.”

“I’ll be sure to make Draco visit when he gets back so Fang can slobber all over him,” Hadrian promised. 

He continued on to the library after saying goodbye to Hagrid. He had been searching for books on Tom Riddle, but had so far found nothing on the man under that name. There was plenty on Voldemort, but even that seemed lacking, clearly skewed. Hadrian knew that Voldemort had done many horrible things and while he could find lots of books that listed his deeds, they never said why. After reading book after book, Hadrian still wasn't truly sure why the wizarding war had really started. He still didn't know Tom Riddle’s original objectives. 

That was one problem with having a being such as Death give him all the information, Death was huge, big picture, and most definitely not human, something that Hadrian found easy to forget at times. Death didn't understand the thinking or motives of people, Death focused on the fact that there was a war, not the complex reasoning behind the fighting. 

Plus Hadrian was getting the feeling that Death wanted him to look into this himself, as though anything pertaining to Tom Riddle or Voldemort would be determined by him. Hadrian guessed that Death was giving him the opportunity to decide since Voldemort had killed him and his family.

“Do you need any help Mr. Peverell?” 

Hadrian looked up from where he sat surrounded by piles of books to see Professor Quirrell. Quirrell reached down and picked up one of the books.

“You’re studying the wizarding war with Voldemort?”

“Yeah,” said Hadrian, “I was curious about what the goals of the two sides were, but these books make it sound like the only goal was to stop Voldemort. They don't say what Voldemort was trying to do. It doesn't say any of his initial goals.”

“You want to know about Voldemort’s goals?” said Quirrell in surprise.

“Yeah,” said Hadrian, “I think it's important to understand why wars are fought and I think I deserve to know what my parents were fighting for.”

He figured that this sounded reasonable enough because it was also the truth.

“It’s not enough to know that he killed your parents and tried to kill you?” asked Quirrell.

“No,” said Hadrian, “It’s not enough.”

Quirrell sat down across from him.

“Most people don’t want to look past Voldemort’s crimes to see his agenda. It’s not something you’ll find in books. History is written by the victor, or at least that whom people perceive to be the victor.”

“Do you know anything about Tom Riddle?”

“Tom Riddle?” Quirrell blinked in surprise, “Where did you hear that name?”

“I overheard it from Dumbledore,” he said with a dismissive shrug, “he didn’t say, but Tom Riddle is connected to Voldemort, isn’t he?”

“They are one and the same,” replied Quirrell.

“No,” said Hadrian.

“No?” said Quirrell, “I’m telling you, they’re the same person.”

“No,” repeated Hadrian, “I don’t think they are. Tom Riddle was the person who came before Voldemort. Voldemort was something new, something different. He became the villain that wizards love to fear.” 

Quirrell frowned, “And what do you think of Voldemort?”

“I think he was a wizard that went too far,” said Hadrian, “perhaps Tom Riddle would have had a chance at making real change, but I think Voldemort could only ever do destruction. But then, I don’t know what Tom Riddle was trying to do.”

“He was trying to better Britain for wizards,” replied Quirrell after a brief pause, “he saw corruption within our world, within our Ministry, and he wanted to fix it.”

“By destroying it?” said Hadrian raising an eyebrow.

“Sometimes things need to be destroyed before they can be rebuilt.”

“But is it worth it?” asked Hadrian, “All that destruction? What’s the point of it if the very people whose lives you’re trying to better are destroyed in the process? If they’re being slaughtered in the streets, what people are you trying to help, what lives are you trying to better?”

“Sacrifices must be made sometimes,” said Quirrell. 

“I know that,” said Hadrian, “I understand the idea of sacrifice and that sometimes they must be made. War is war, people die. I can even justify my parents’ deaths. Sure, do I wish they were alive, of course I do. But they weren’t civilians. They knew the risks and they chose to fight anyway. It’s when the noncombatants, the people that you are fighting for, suffer, that one should stop and evaluate their actions.”

“So you don’t think all of Voldemort’s actions were justified?”

Hadrian’s eyes narrowed at this. That was an odd question. In fact, Quirrell was acting off. He hadn’t stuttered once and his voice sounded different beyond just the lack of stutter. The whole conversation seemed odd. Hadrian opened his Sight and struggled to remain calm and not show any reaction to what he saw.

“Of course not,” said Hadrian without pause, “but we’ve gotten off target. If Tom Riddle’s goals were to fix the ministry and stop corruption, did he ever consider becoming the Minister of Magic? Wouldn’t he be able to fix the Ministry from the inside?”

Quirrell watched him for a moment.

“I’m afraid that I must leave you now. Perhaps we can continue this conversation in the future. H-have a n-n-nice day Mr. P-Peverell.”

Hadrian watched as Quirrell left, eyes narrowed.

“Perhaps one day we can talk face to face,” he whispered to himself. 

How had he not seen it before? Quirrell was Voldemort, or at least the two were sharing the same body. He had managed to fool everyone, including Hadrian. 

_ “You knew and didn’t tell me.” _

_ “It’s not as though he can kill you,”  _ replied Death,  _ “and he can’t touch you.” _

_ “Can’t touch me? He tried to throw me off my broomstick! Wait, touch me, that’s what you said before, do you mean he can’t physically touch me?” _

_ “Yes, thanks to your mother your touch would burn him. Your mother’s protective magic lies in your blood. Dumbledore believed that keeping you with your mother’s sister would protect you because you share blood. But magic like that is not something that will fade overtime, nor can it be strengthened; it simply is”  _

_ “What should I do?” _

_ “That’s up to you.” _

_ “Then I will wait,”  _ decided Hadrian,  _ “I will make my move when he decides to make his. I know that he will try to get the fake stone, and I plan on being there when he does.” _

 

Hadrian didn’t bother trying to look for Tom Riddle in the library books after that. He spent his break studying the language of the dead and learning the hierarchy of the reapers. There were all different types of reapers and they each collected different souls. Some collected the souls of children, others those fallen in battle, others for those who died violent deaths. 

On Christmas eve Death transported him to Stonehenge to show him the sight where rituals used to take place before wizards were forced to abandon the location. Covens used to gather there and use the stones as focal points for their magic though the runes that had been on the stones had been removed by the witches and wizards before they left the area. 

Death told him about covens of old and how few existed today because of how much the Ministry regulated them. Covens allowed powerful magic to be performed by linking the magic of several witches and wizards together and the use of artefacts and other tools would help them amplify their magic. 

Typically when covens performed magic seven people would join their magic together. This number was found to work best since it allowed a large amount of magic to be pulled together. More than seven made it difficult to work together since such powerful rituals required exact precision. If something went wrong, it always went horrible, and could easily end with all involved being killed, which was why the Ministry had become so heavily involved in their regulation. Some believed that this was also the source of why the number seven gained significance within magic. 

The two stayed at Stonehenge late into the night, but Hadrian still woke up early the next morning. The first thing he noticed was the pile of presents at the bottom of his bed. He grinned and pulled them closer to him and began unwrapping them.

Clearly his friends knew him well, for they all gave him books. Hermione gave him a book on advanced runes, Neville a book on rare plants, and Draco a book about rituals and a book on snakes, since Hadrian had told him about his interest in the animals, though not that he was a parselmouth. 

Hagrid had also sent him a flute and homemade fudge that he put near the fire to soften up.  

He spent the day lounging around the common room, enjoying the fact that he had the whole room to himself, before going down for the feast. He flipped through his books on snakes as he ate and smirked when he felt Dumbledore and Snape watching him. He knew that the two had been keeping a close eye on him, trying to figure out the truth about him more than ever. He could also see Quirrell watching him. 

After the feast he returned to his dorm room, but he couldn’t sleep. He took out his invisibility cloak and wandered the castle like he had done many nights, in search of hidden passages, trying to discover the school’s secrets. 

He came across an unlocked room he had never been in before and entered. Inside was a tall mirror in a gold frame. On the top it said, ‘Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.’

Hadrian squinted at it in confusion, that was no language he knew of, unless, yes! You read it backwards, then it said, ‘I show not your face but your heart's desire.’ Hadrian stopped moving closer at this. Your heart’s desire? That sounded good and all, but then the best traps often did. This mirror was humming with magic, trying to draw him in, and he hadn’t even noticed it when he first entered the room. 

Hadrian turned and left, not looking in the mirror once. He could live his life just fine without seeing what was in that mirror.  


	14. Chapter Fourteen

The rest of the break was uneventful for Hadrian and he was happy when his friends returned. He hadn’t realized just how much he had missed them until they returned. Death was right about having friends, they helped make him feel human. 

With classes starting again he was kept busy between his classes, assignments, Quidditch, and his studies with Death. He continued to keep an eye on the third floor corridor though it appeared Quirrell had yet to try and make it past the stone again.

Though one night he was shocked to see three Gryffindors sneaking around the area. They were the Gryffindor first year boys minus Neville, Ron Weasley, Dean Thomas, and Seamus Finnigan. He watched as the three boys made it to the door to the room with the dog before Hadrian conjured an illusion of Mrs. Norris, Filch the caretaker’s cat. The three had fled at the sight of the cat knowing that Filch wouldn’t be far behind. 

A couple weeks after break Hadrian and his friends went to visit Hagrid. 

“Hagrid,” called Hadrian knocking on the door, “I brought Draco to cheer up Fang.”

Behind him Draco groaned and muttered something about the state of his robes and dog drool. 

“Now’s not the best time,” called Hagrid and Hadrian frowned. He noticed that all the curtains were drawn closed. 

“Is it just me, or does he sound odd?” asked Draco.

“He does,” agreed Hadrian and Neville nodded.

“Are you alright Hagrid?” called Hermione.

“I know how to unlock this door!” called Hadrian and Hermione sent him a slightly disapproving look. A second later Hagrid opened the door with a sigh and let them in.

“Would you like some tea?” he asked as they entered.

Hadrian was hit by a wave of heat as he walked in.

“Hagrid!” said Draco, “Aren’t you hot!”

Hagrid just shrugged as he started getting them tea. Fang immediately went to Draco and put his head on his lap.

Hadrian caught sight of something in the fire and nudged Draco. Draco’s eyes widened at the sight.

“Is that a dragon egg?” Draco asked, his voice going up in pitch with alarm, “It is, isn’t it!”

“Hagrid, what are you doing with a dragon egg?” asked Hadrian.

“I won it,” replied Hagrid, “I was down at the pub and met this stranger and he was interested in what type of creatures I’ve worked with, and he had this dragon egg. Seemed eager to get rid of it.”

“I wonder why,” muttered Draco.

“You do realize that this is illegal?” said Hermione, “Not to mention incredibly dangerous.”

“You do live in a wooden house,” pointed out Neville.

“And what will you do when it grows too big to keep in your house, if it manages to not burn it down first?” asked Hadrian, “What about Fang? What will you do when the dragon starts looking at him like food?”

Draco seemed to pale at this and pulled Fang closer to him. 

“What happens when it gets lonely and starts looking for other dragons?” continued Hadrian.

Hagrid was frowning now, “Err, maybe I didn’t think this all through.”

“You should go to Dumbledore,” urged Hadrian, “tell him what happened, and that you didn’t really believe the man when he said he had a dragon egg, but it turned out to be true, and now the egg needs to go to a dragon sanctuary.” 

Hagrid nodded reluctantly.

“Who even carries around a dragon egg?” said Draco.

“Hagrid,” asked Hadrian, “did this man want anything in return?”

“No,” said Hagrid, “like I said, I won it off of him. He wanted to know about what creatures I’ve worked with before. I told him that any creature can be tamed, you just need to know how.”

“What creatures did you tell him about?” asked Hadrian, growing suspicious.

“I told him about Fluffy-”

“Fluffy?” asked Neville.

“Fluffy is a cerberus,” said Hagrid sounding proud, “three headed dog. He seems ferocious, but play music and he falls right asleep.”

“Did you tell the man that?” asked Hadrian is heart sinking.

“I did,” replied Hagrid, “and he figured after Fluffy, I could handle a dragon.”

They left Hagrid with the promise that he would go straight to Dumbledore. Hadrian wanted to scream in frustration. Hagrid had just told a random stranger at a bar how to get past the stone’s first defense and he could guess who that stranger was. Quirrell had let out the troll on Halloween as a distraction to try and get past Fluffy and failed, but now he knew how to get past the dog. The only bright spot was that if he got past everything, the stone he would get wasn’t the real one. 

As the weeks passed and they drew closer to the end of the year and exams Hadrian began to grow more impatient. When was Quirrell going to try and get the stone?

On the day of his final exam Death told him that Dumbledore had been called to London.

_ “When will he be back?” _ asked Hadrian.

_ “Not until tomorrow.” _

Then this was it, Quirrell’s chance to get the stone. After his exam Hadrian told his friends that he was going to go take a nap. He headed to his dorm room and got his cloak and flute and then went to the third floor corridor under the cloak. He knew that Quirrell was still holding exams for the older students so he wouldn’t have been able to go after the stone yet. 

Hadrian unlocked the door and locked it behind him. Fluffy began growling, but Hadrian held up his flute and began playing. He had been practicing with it and played a simple melody he had come up with. Instantly Fluffy’s eyes began to droop and he fell over, fast asleep. 

Hadrian moved the dog’s massive paw away from the trapdoor and opened it. Still playing the flute he conjured a glowing ball of light and floated over the trapdoor. He could see vines that he recognized as Devil’s Snare. He increased the size of the ball of light and made it emit heat then sent it floating down towards the plant. The vines moved away from the ball of light and Hadrian floated down through the path it created and into a dirt tunnel. He distinguished the light and the vines refilled in the gap.

He walked down the path and entered a room with a high ceiling with birds flying around.

_ “Are you sure about that?” _ asked Death.

He squinted up at the birds and he realized a moment later that he was looking at flying keys. He must need to catch the correct key to unlock the door. He reached out with his magic and wrapped it around the keys. It was a simple charm on them and it was easy enough to change the existing magic so that the keys stopped flying and simply hovered in place. He quickly scanned the keys, feeling the spell drawing on his magic. He spotted a large antique looking key and pulled it to him. He tried it on the door and it sprung open. He pulled his magic away from the keys and they began flying around again. He released the door key and went to the next room. 

The room was dark, but he could make out stone figures. They looked like chess pieces, yes, the whole room was a chess board. He realized that the game must be activated when someone entered, but the room couldn’t detect him because of the cloak. He easily slipped though the pieces being careful not to touch them and left the room.

He was hit with a familiar stench and a second later he saw the troll, but the troll didn’t seem to be aware of his presence. Grateful for the cloak he ran across the room. 

Nothing happened when he entered the next room, but the entrance to the next room was blocked by flames. He examined the flames and new that it was no ordinary fire. He looked at the bottles and read the riddle and quickly figured out the correct potion to get through the fire, but there was only enough for one person. If he drank it, then Quirrell wouldn’t be able to get through. 

_ “You can walk through the flames,”  _ said Death,  _ “they won’t kill you.” _

Right, thought Hadrian, he couldn’t die, or at least wouldn’t stay dead. He wrapped his magic around himself protectively and ran forward, bracing himself for the pain. His breath was knocked out of his lungs and his skin felt like it was burning from an intense cold. He could feel Death’s power wrap around him, protecting him. He stumbled out the other side and landed on all fours. He gulped in air and felt like his muscles were turning to mush and he was visibly shaking. He felt as though his nerve endings had been seared and there was a dull throbbing pain throughout his body. He was freezing as though the cold had sunk into his bones.

_ “That was horrible.” _

_ “What did you expect, you should be dead.” _

After several minutes he finally felt capable of looking around. He was grateful that nothing had attacked him while he was down. His eyes widened as he saw what was in the room with him. It was the mirror that he had discovered over Christmas break. 

_ “What is this thing?” _  he asked.

_ “The Mirror of Erised.” _

_ “The Mirror of Desire? It’s guarding the stone?” _

He got no answer as he slowly got to his feet, removed his cloak, and made his way closer to the mirror without looking in it. He walked behind the mirror and sat down, leaning against it and waited. He hoped Quirrell got here soon. 

He mediated as he waited and went though the lists of spells in his head that Death wanted him to memorize. Then finally he heard someone enter the room. He listened as Quirrell muttered to himself, trying to figure out the mirror and how to get the stone.

Hadrian got to his feet and stepped out from behind the mirror.

“It took you long enough,” he said startling Quirrell, “I was beginning to think that you weren’t going to make it. Having trouble now?”

“Use the boy…” whispered Voldemort and Hadrian rolled his.

“Really?” he asked, “How about we just talk face to face.”

Quirrell’s eyes widened almost comically, but a second later he reached up and removed the turban and turned around. On the back of his head was Voldemort’s face. His nose was more of a slit like a snake and his eyes were red. 

“Hello Voldemort,” greeted Hadrian, “you’ve certainly hit hard times, living like a parasite on the back of a man’s head.”

“Thanks to you,” hissed Voldemort, “see what you’ve reduced me to?”

“Sorry to break it to you,” replied Hadrian, “but I did nothing to you. You brought your fate upon yourself, but that’s a story for another day. You want the stone.”

“You are not as I expected,” said Voldemort, “give me the stone, join me and we could live forever.”

“Naw, I’m good,” said Hadrian, “though bad news, the stone isn’t here. At least not the real one.”

He took a deep breath and stepped in front of the mirror, hoping that he was right. The mirror only showed his reflection, nothing else. Then his reflection held up the stone, winked and placed it in his pocket. Hadrian reached into his pocket and took out the stone. He tossed it to Quirrell who just managed to catch it awkwardly.

“Take it, but it won’t do anything.”

“You lie,” hissed Voldemort.

“No, but you can wait and find out for yourself,” said Hadrian with a shrug, “I think you should leave and not return to Hogwarts.”  

Voldemort growled, “Get him!” 

Quirrell turned and ran for Hadrian, but Hadrian reached out and pressed his hand to his face, the skin beneath his hand began to sear and burn, crumbling away. Passed raced through Hadrian’s body at the contact, but he didn’t release Quirrell who was screaming in agony and trying to get away. 

“I told you to leave,” Hadrian growled and then sent his magic wrapped with the power from his mother’s protection into Quirrell’s body. Quirrell seemed to stiffen for a moment then turned to dust. Hadrian felt the small piece of Voldemort’s soul flee Quirrell’s body and let him go. 

He called on his magic and summoned his reaper’s blade and bent over the dust that was all that remained of Quirrell and collected his soul with the blade. It took a few tries, but he managed to capture the soul. The glowing light of his light force disappeared into the blade. Hadrian then reached out and collected Quirrell’s magic from where it was dissipating into the environment and pulled it into himself. Instantly he felt stronger and the fatigue he had felt from attacking Quirrell and going through the flames disappeared. 

He sighed as he wondered where Voldemort would go. This was not the outcome he had hoped for though he had suspected that it would happen. Voldemort wasn’t in his right mind and there was nothing he could do about that until he retrieved the horcruxes and reunited his soul. And now Voldemort didn’t have a body.

_ “But you have the real stone,” _ pointed out Death,  _ “Voldemort was planning on using it to create a new body for himself, why don’t you do the same?” _

Hadrian thought about it. It made sense, he could collect the horcruxes and then place the pieces of the Voldemort’s soul in the new body. Once it was ready he would transfer Voldemort’s consciousness and the small portion of soul he still had into the body. Though hopefully it would be Tom Riddle returning, not Voldemort.

_ “It will take time to do properly,”  _ Death warned him.

Hadrian nodded to himself, his mind made up. He would start working on it over the summer.   


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Hadrian spent the ride on the train playing wizards chess with Neville while Draco and Hermione bickered. Both Neville and Hadrian had learned early on that it was best not to interfere between the two of them.

When the train arrived in London Hadrian shrunk down his trunk and Hedwig’s cage and put them in his pocket before exiting onto the platform. He watched as Neville was greeted by a woman wearing a hat with a stuffed vulture on it that had to be his grandmother. Hermione ran to her parents and Draco went over to a blond couple that resembled him.

Hadrian was just making his way past everyone when Draco called his name.

“I would like to introduce you to my parents,” he said once Hadrian walked over.

“It’s very nice to meet you Lord and Lady Malfoy,” Hadrian greeted them in proper pureblood fashion, “I’m Hadrian Peverell.”

“Draco has told us much about you,” said Mrs. Malfoy with a smile, “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“Indeed,” said Mr. Malfoy, his eyes were cold as they surveyed Hadrian. He was used to that look, he had been receiving it all year from people trying to figure him out.

“Draco has also told us about your living situation,” continued Mrs. Malfoy, “I was wondering if perhaps you would enjoy spending the summer with us at Malfoy Manor instead.”

Hadrian blinked in surprise as Draco grinned at him eagerly. He hadn’t expected this. He had been planning to spend his summer working with Death on collecting the horcruxes and working on learning his Head Reaper duties and just what it meant to have the power and abilities of a reaper. Could he still do that at the Malfoy’s? He looked at Draco and decided that he really wanted to spend the summer with him.

“I would love that,” he said after a brief pause and Draco grinned, “Thank you.”

“Do you have all your stuff?” Mrs. Malfoy asked him and Hadrian nodded patting his pocket where he had his shrunken trunk. He called Hedwig and told her to meet him at Malfoy Manor and the owl took off.  

Mrs. Malfoy offered Hadrian her arm and she apparated them to Malfoy Manor. The experience was totally different from when he travelled with Death. When he travelled with Death it was smooth, almost as though he wasn’t even moving. This felt like his body was being jerked forward at incredible speed and turning inside out at the same time.

He managed not to stumble when they arrived at the manor, but just barely. Once he had recovered his eyes widened at the sight of Malfoy Manor. The place was huge and screamed ‘we have money.’ It looked like a palace. The lawns were perfectly manicured with neatly trimmed bushes with white roses and Hadrian caught sight of peacocks wandering the grounds.

Draco grabbed Hadrian’s hand and he allowed the boy to drag him on a tour of the manor and the grounds.

“Draco,” he asked as they walked through the manor, “are your parents really alright with you being friends with me, considering?”

“Yeah,” said Draco, “I think my father was surprised, but mother is happy that I have friends.”

“And they definitely don’t mind me staying?”

“Of course not!” exclaimed Draco.

“What about Hermione and Neville?” he asked, “Are they okay with them?”

Hadrian didn’t want to talk to Draco about this, but he wanted to know where things stood. As much as he was willing to stand up for Neville’s status as a light wizard and the fact that Hermione was a muggleborn, he’d rather not get into an argument with his hosts.

“My mother’s fine with it,” said Draco, “but I haven’t really told my father much about them.”

Hadrian nodded and then distracted Draco by asking him to play Quidditch. The two chased a snitch around the ground until it was time to go in for dinner. After dinner Draco showed Hadrian to his room that the house-elves had prepared for him. The room was enormous in shades of green and silver and it was right next to Draco’s room.

Hadrian tossed and turned that night, but couldn’t sleep. He sat up to see a figure leaning over him.

“Okay, now that’s just creepy,” mumbled Hadrian sitting up.

Death grinned at him. He had taken the appearance of a handsome youth with gold hair, light freckles and dark green eyes.

“Nice place,” said Death looking around the room.

“Yeah,” agreed Hadrian, “also, I seem to be sleeping less and less, but I don’t feel tired. Any ideas?”

“Hmmm,” said Death tilting his head, “I’d say it's part of having reaper powers. Remember when I told you that you might have physical changes? This must be one of them. I bet soon you’ll need very little sleep to function.”

“That kinda sucks,” said Hadrian, “I like sleep. Also, is that why my night vision is so good or did you do that when you fixed my eyesight?”

“A bit of both,” said Death, “But just think, since you don't need to sleep as much, you can get so much more work done! And I already removed the trace from you so you can use magic whenever and wherever you want.”

“More work, great, just what I wanted to hear,” groaned Hadrian, but he grinned as he got out of bed, “What are we doing?”

“You need to learn how to use your reaper blade,” said Death, “you managed to capture Quirrell’s soul, but it was sloppy. So, I recruited a reaper to help.”

Death lead Hadrian out onto the grounds and brought him to small garden with a pond that was groomed in such a way to appear natural. Hadrian noticed Hedwig watching him from a tree branch and waved as his owl who hooted in response.

Standing in the center of the garden was a tall and thin figure with androgynous features. Their skin was alabaster white and they had raven locks pulled back in a braid and purple eyes that were definitely not human. A pair of scars curved along the figure’s left check under their eye. They wore blue and black clothes that had an Asian flair to them. With dark blue pants, tall black boots, a black kimono style top with a blue sash and blue gloves.

“This is Yong,” said Death, “meaning eternal or brave; a reaper of spies and assassins, and those they kill. One who takes the souls of both killers and victims. Yong shall teach you how to use your blade and collect souls. I’ll leave the two of you alone now.”

Death disappeared, melting into the shadows leaving Hadrian with the reaper.

“Draw your weapon.”

Yong’s voice was quiet and modulated, pleasant to listen to, but also ancient and old.

Hadrian lifted his hand and summoned his dagger from his magic and soul. It immediately sprang to his hand, the blade swirling with dark shadows.

“Sheath your weapon,” Yong demanded and Hadrian did with a slight frown, his magic drawing the dagger back, “Defend yourself.”

Suddenly Yong hurled a blast of dark purple swirling light, not quite solid enough to be considered fire, at him that he just managed to dodge.

“What the hell!” he cried, ducking down, landing on the ground hard. He barely had time to roll out of the way of another blast. He hit the ground right next to his head and dissolved, not appearing to harm the grass or leave any marks. Hadrian knew better to think that he would have the same fate if he were hit.

“Use your blade,” said Yong conjuring another ball of purple light, this one bigger than the others.

“But you just said to put it away!” cried Hadrian jumping to his feet, ready to dodge, his back sore from hitting the ground so hard.

“And you must be able to draw your weapon at a moment’s notice,” said Yong hurling the light at him forcing Hadrian to dodge, diving down and to the left before jumping immediately back up.

Hadrian summoned his dagger, but it took longer than usual as he struggled to focus and call on it as he was forced to dodge again.

“But I would just use my wand to make a shield,” he pointed out to Yong.

“Are you learning to work with your wand now?” asked Yong, “No, you are learning how to use a reaper’s blade. Besides, even if you did use your wand, you would be unable to deflect my blows without using your abilities as a reaper, and so far all you can do is try and use your blade.”

When Yong sent the next ball of light at him, Hadrian threw up his blade and deflected it to the side. He barely got the chance to celebrate his victory before he was forced to deflect two more blasts in subsequent order. He could feel strange tremors run this his blade and into his magical core when the light touched his blade. After the second blast he noticed his blade was surrounded by a few wisps of the purple light and it gave him an idea.

When Yong sent the next blast at him, he didn’t deflect it off his blade, instead he held his blade out and drew the blast in like he had Quirrell’s magic, guiding it with his magic to his blade. The purple light seemed to be sucked into the blade with some strands of it still surrounding it. He felt the energy from the blast try to race through his blade into his body, but not to attack his body he realized, but his life force and magic. He blocked the energy off from his body and kept it in his blade and then with a flick of his wrist sent the ball of energy back at Yong.

Yong stood still, making no attempt to dodge the light and didn’t appear alarmed. At the last second a short curvy sword appeared in Yong’s hand and the reaper easily caught the ball of energy on the tip of the blade. The ball of energy stood balanced on the blade’s tip for a moment, then with a swish of Yong’s hand both the purple light and the blade disappeared.

Yong made no move to continue attacking him and the two just stood staring at each other. Yong’s gaze was intense, but Hadrian refused to look away as he struggled to control his breathing and slow his racing heart. He was beginning to feel drained, this was magic he wasn’t used to and it took a lot out of him.

“Why?” hissed Yong suddenly, “Why did Death choose you?”

“Why don’t you ask Death?” said Hadrian raising an eyebrow.

“No one questions Death,” said Yong as though Hadrian were an idiot.

“Well, hate to break it to you,” said Hadrian, “but that’s exactly what you’re doing by questioning me.”

Yong growled in the back of its throat, “Death has never granted anyone true immortality. I have reaped gods, and I can reap you.”

Yong leaped forward so fast, the reaper’s blade appearing in its hand so it was like a blur and Hadrian couldn’t do anything to stop it. The blade cut into Hadrian from hip to shoulder and he felt as though his body were burning, but he couldn’t tell if it was from heat or cold, and dumped in acid at the same time. Hadrian could see light shining out of the cut and it took him a moment to realize that the cut wasn’t physical, but had cut into his life force and he was seeing it through his Sight. Yong was trying to reap his soul.

Hadrian fell to his knees crying out in pain as Yong held up its sword out in front of him. Hadrian felt his soul pushing against him, trying to go to blade as Yong called it from his body. He tried to stop it, but every time he tried to reign it back in it just slipped through his grasp like water. Then it stopped, as though his soul had hit an invisible barrier that prevented it from leaving his body. He could still feel the a tugging, but nothing was happening. Even the pain was slowly dissolving as his magic fought back to protect himself, finally protesting against Yong’s actions.

Yong growled in frustration and lifted the blade to strike him again. He watched the blade come towards him and with a cry sent his magic flying at Yong; a burst of raw power that could have killed a human, sending Yong flying across the garden. The reaper hit a tree hard, smashing it to pieces letting out a cry that sounded more frustrated than anything. Hadrian caught sight of Hedwig in the corner of his eye flying away from a nearby tree.  

Hadrian sat panting as he felt his magic fill in the cut Yong’s blade had made, healing himself. With his sight he could see the edges knit themselves together as though the cut where a physical thing and the light slowly faded until it was gone. He got to his feet feeling slightly shaky as Yong did the same on the other side of the garden.

Yong waved a wrist at the destroyed tree without even looking at it and it seemed to flicker for a moment before appearing whole and undamaged again. Hadrian’s eyes widened slightly at this, but he figured that since part of a reaper's job was to go undetected they were good at fixing any damage they left behind.

The reaper held up its blade to examine it and Hadrian couldn’t help the small noise he made when he saw the blade. The strange metal was flickering weakly and was slightly bent and it looked as though it had been partially melted.

“So this is immortality,” he heard Yong whisper turning the blade around its hand examining it. The reaper pulled the sword into itself with a wince and there seemed to be a slight struggled as though its body didn’t want to accept the damaged blade.      

“Guess you really can’t reap my soul,” panted Hadrian.

“I guess so,” said Yong, seeming more subdued, but stood stiffly.

The reaper crossed the garden and stood staring down at Hadrian, eyes narrowed.

“You need to learn to ignore pain,” said Yong, “it will only distract you. If you learn to not feel it then you will be able to keep moving in battle and keep a clear head which will make healing yourself easier. On like regular humans you will not need to worry about dying or debilitating injuries.”

Hadrian nodded.

“That’s all for the night,” said Yong and then disappeared.

“Well bye,” muttered Hadrian as he made his way back to the manor.

“Not bad,” said Death appearing next to him.

“Not bad?” said Hadrian, “Yong nearly tour me in half. And wait, you mean you were watching the whole time and let Yong do that?”

“You need to learn,” said Death, “and the reapers need to learn about you.”

“Wow,” said Hadrian, “some guardian you are.”

Death just grinned as Hadrian collapsed onto his bed. One good thing about the night was that he was tired now.


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Hadrian was kept busy over the summer and was beginning to get the feeling that Mr. Malfoy had wanted him to spend the summer with them so he could observe him. But Mrs. Malfoy seemed to genuinely want him there. Apparently Draco had started asking her early in the school year after learning that Hadrian lived in an orphanage.

Hadrian kept in contact with Hermione and Neville through letters that he sent with Hedwig. One day he noticed a house-elf talking to Hedwig, but the moment Hadrian walked into the owlery, the elf disappeared. After that Hadrian noticed the elf watching him. He learned that the house-elf’s name was Dobby and that he was Mr. Malfoy’s personal elf. This made Hadrian assume that the elf was watching him and reporting back to Mr. Malfoy.

But then one day Mr. Malfoy walked into the room and Dobby disappeared immediately as though afraid to be caught by his master.

Hadrian was careful to make sure that Dobby didn’t follow him outside at night when he went to train with Yong.The reaper’s method of teaching seemed to be attack first, explain later. Hadrian had come to expect the reaper to attack and found himself preparing more for the attacks.

Yong would use various attacks, sometimes attacking him physically with magic, sometimes attacking his soul, or a few times just attacking him with its blade which was back to normal. Yong’s blade didn’t always look the same, it would change between different types of weapons, sometimes the wavy sword, another time a spear and one interesting night it was a bow that shot arrows made of some sort of energy that pulled Hadrian’s soul and magic towards it before the energy returned to Yong. Hadrian guessed that if it hit a human their soul would be pulled back with the energy.

Near the end of the summer Hadrian and Draco received their letters for Hogwarts with their lists of necessary books and supplies. Mr. Malfoy brought them to Diagon Alley to make their purchases after selling some items in Knockturn Alley at Borgins and Botts. Apparently the Ministry was performing raids in search of dark artifacts and Mr. Malfoy was worried about a few items being found in his home. Hadrian couldn’t help but wonder how anyone believed that he had served Voldemort unwillingly under the Imperius Curse.

Hadrian was thrilled when he realized that he needed to get new school robes because he had grown several inches and was finally taller than Draco who had just glared sullenly at Hadrian while he was measured for the new robes.

Their last stop was Flourish and Blotts for their books. Hadrian was surprised to see a long line of witches spilling out of the shop.

“Gilderoy Lockhart’s having a book signing,” said Draco pointing to a sign on the door.

Hadrian looked down as his list of school books, “He’s written all of our Defense books.”

He remembered when he first came to the shop with Death a couple years ago. Death had gotten every book Hadrian was interested in, expect Lockhart. Death had refused to get anything by the wizard, calling him fraud, so Hadrian didn’t have much hope for that year’s Defense class.

The two boys made their way into the shop, struggling through the crowd. Luckily for them all of Lockhart’s books were in the front of the shop on display so they had no problem grabbing what they needed. After they purchased the books they were making their way to the exit when the witches and just about everyone else in the shop burst into applause as Gilderoy Lockhart entered the room. The wizard was dressed in lilac robes and looked like he must of have spent several hours fixing his golden hair. He gave the crowd a blindingly white smile that showed way too many teeth. All the pictures of him on the books did the same.

A photographer was eagerly snapping pictures of Lockhart causing puffs of smoke and a bright flash each time he took a picture. The man shoved past Draco.

“Move aside boy,” he growled, “this is for the _Daily Prophet_.”

“Who gives a shit,” muttered Draco and Hadrian silently agreed.

The small commotion caught Lockhart's attention and he looked over at them. He saw Draco and then he saw Hadrian.

“It can’t be,” he said, his eyes wide, “it’s Harry Potter.”

Hadrian wanted to groan as he was grabbed by the photographer and dragged forward to stand next to Lockhart who threw an arm around him and told him to smile, which he didn’t.

“When young Mr. Potter walked into Flourish and Blotts today he only wanted to buy my autobiography, _Magical Me_ ,” said Lockhart picking up one of the books, his picture grinning at the crowd. “He did not expect to walk away with my full book collection, free of charge.”

Hadrian glared at Lockhart and to his surprise Lockhart pulled his arm back and took a few steps back, his grin faltering. Hadrian picked up the pile of books and walked away without a word, waiting to get out of the shop as fast as possible. As he walked towards the exit he almost walked into a redheaded girl.

“Sorry,” he said, stepping out of the way just in time to stop a collision. The girl stared at him with wide eyes. “Um, you’re going to Hogwarts this year right?”

The girl nodded still looking stunned. Hadrian thought she looked familiar though he was certain he had never met her before.

“Here,” said Hadrian handing the girl the pile of books, “I already got mine.”

He quickly exited the shop and looked for Draco and Mr. Malfoy. When he didn’t see them he looked back in the shop to see Mr. Malfoy talking to a man with red hair. The man was surrounded by several redheaded children, including the girl. Hadrian realized that it was the Weasley family. The youngest boy, Ron, was in his year.

As he watched Mr. Malfoy reached forward and pulled something out of the girl’s cauldron and dropped it back in. Hadrian’s eyes narrowed, it looked like Mr. Malfoy had slipped something else into the cauldron, something thin and black.

He was distracted when Mr. Weasley punched Mr. Malfoy and the two began fighting and had to be broken up by Hagrid who Hadrian hadn’t even seen enter the shop despite the man’s large size.

Mr. Malfoy stalked out of the shop looking furious. Hadrian gave Hagrid a quick wave as he followed Mr. Malfoy and Draco and they apparated back to the manor.

Hadrian was just putting his purchases away in his trunk when he heard something behind him. He whirled around and had his wand pointed at the intruder in an instant. He was surprised to see Dobby the house-elf, who cowered away from his wand in fear. He immediately pocketed his wand.

“What are doing in here Dobby?” he asked the elf, trying not to scare him anymore. He knew he wouldn’t get many answers if the elf was terrified.

“Hadrian Peverell sir,” squeaked the elf, “Dobby has come to warn you. Hadrian Peverell must not return to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.”

“Why not?” asked Hadrian in confusion, kneeling so that he was at the same level as the elf.

“Hadrian Peverell is in great danger sir,” said Dobby.

“Danger? From What?”

“Dobby can not say sir,” he said, “Hadrian Peverell is in grave danger.”

“So you said,” sighed Hadrian, “Let me guess, Mr. Malfoy doesn’t know you’re doing this so you can’t say anymore.”

Dobby nodded, his large ears flapping around his head.

“Thank you for the warning Dobby, but I have to got to Hogwarts. I have no other place to go,” he lied, “and I’ll let you in on a little secret. I’m powerful, more so than anyone realizes. I’ll be fine. Now please leave.”

Dobby looked reluctant to go, but he snapped his fingers and vanished. Hadrian noticed that his magic felt very different from a wizard’s.

He thought over Dobby’s warning, if Dobby knew something was going to happen, but wasn’t allowed to tell him then it must somehow involve Mr. Malfoy, and possibly a book that he slipped into a certain Weasley’s cauldron. Hadrian knew that just because something looked harmless didn’t mean it was, and he cursed himself for not trying to look at the book with his Sight. He was going to have to get close to the Weasley girl and take a closer look at this book. He didn’t know how the book could possible put him in danger yet and he needed to be prepared. Or better yet, if he could just get the book from the girl, then perhaps he could prevent anything from happening.

A few days later it was time to leave for Hogwarts and Hadrian thought Mr. Malfoy was looking at him as though disappointed that he still didn’t understand Hadrian. They apparated to the train platform after Draco had to run up to his room three times for things he had forgotten. When they arrived the station was just starting to fill with families.

Hadrian thanked the Malfoys for allowing him to stay with them and then stepped aside as Draco said his goodbyes. That’s when he noticed the Weasley family enter the station. He watched them as they shouted and said their goodbyes. All except the youngest Weasley, who just stood to the side her eyes vacant. Hadrian could have cursed when he noticed her clutching the black book to her chest like a lifeline.

He made his way across the station until he stood directly in front of the girl who didn’t seem to notice his presence.

“Hello,” he said, startling her, “I’m Hadrian Peverell. I’m in your brother Ron’s grade. We ran into each other at the bookstore, remember?”

The girl seemed to not comprehend his words for a moment, blinking slowly as though coming out of a daze. Then she gave him a shy smile.

“I remember,” she said, “thank you for the books, you didn’t have to do that. My name is Ginny.”

“Do you have anyone to sit with on the train Ginny?” he asked. She shook her head. “Then you should join me and my friends.”

He picked up Ginny’s truck, his was already shrunk in his pocket, and carried it over to the train.

“There you are!” called Draco and Hadrian walked towards him, Ginny following.

He introduced Draco to Ginny, who seemed surprised that Hadrian wanted to seat with a Weasley, but he didn’t comment. They got onto the train and Hadrian caught sight of Neville and Hermione entering a compartment and joined them. He introduced them to Ginny as they stowed their trunks.

Ginny sat between Hermione and Hadrian and they chatted about their summers. Hadrian kept an eye on Ginny who was still clutching the book. At one point in a lull in the conversation she pulled out a quill and began writing in it. So it was journal not a book. He cautiously lowered his Sight, but what he saw was very odd. The book was obviously laced with dark magic, but further down below the magic it almost appeared to have a soul.

Hadrian’s eyes widened and it took all his restraint to not just yank the book out of Ginny’s hands. The girl was holding a horcrux.

_“Is it his?”_

_“Yes,”_ said Death, _“Tom Riddle’s first; it contains half his soul.”_

Hadrian lowered his Sight again and looked closer. This time he noticed small strands extending from the portion of soul attaching themselves to Ginny and some were beginning to burrow into her soul, latching on.

Shit. He couldn’t just take the book from her now. Not without knowing what it would do to her at least. Removing it from her might potentially hurt her.

Hadrian spent the rest of the train ride chatting with Ginny, trying to stop her from writing anymore in the book. He had to separate from her when they arrived at the school platform as she went with Hagrid and the other first years.

Hadrian went with the rest of the school to the carriages which were pulled by thestrals, skeletal horses with wings. They could only be seen by those who had seen someone die and he wondered if he could see them because of Quirrell or if seeing Death gave one the ability to see them as well.

They rode up to the castle and went to the Great Hall for the welcome feast. Hadrian and Hermione sat at the Ravenclaw table as they waited for the sorting. Ginny was sorted into Gryffindor which wasn’t a surprise. The hat had barely touched her head before it sorted her. Hadrian clapped politely as each student was sorted. The only other person whose sorting he paid attention to was a girl with long dirty blond hair and wide eyes named Luna Lovegood who was sorted into Ravenclaw. Something about the girl’s magic stood out to him.

He went to the owlery to visit Hedwig before going to the Ravenclaw common room. When he arrived the room was empty except for Luna Lovegood who was reading _The Quibbler_. He went to his dorm room and got a book before returning to the common room.

He stood for a second and observed Luna. He cautiously opened his Sight while looking at her. He could see her aurora, a silvery blue color with bursts of pink throughout. But he could also see a swirling golden mist around her that shimmered and rippled as though in a state between gas and liquid.

 _“What is she?”_ he asked Death.

_“She is touched by Fate.”_

_“She’s a seer?”_

_“Of a sort,”_ replied Death, _“She is privy to much knowledge and is aware of more than most.”_

Luna suddenly looked up at Hadrian and smiled, looking amused. Hadrian grinned back and walked up to her.

“Hello little moon,” he greeted her and she tilted her head as though examining him.

“Hello little Death,” she said.

Hadrian’s grin widened and without another word he sat down next to her and they both began reading.   


	17. Chapter Seventeen

As classes started over the next couple of days Hadrian’s prediction about Defense were proven correct when it was revealed that Lockhart himself was teaching the class. The man had released pixies on the Gryffindors and poor Neville told them about how he had been lifted up by his ears by the pixies while Lockhart fled and locked himself in his office.

Lockhart kept trying to rope Hadrian into helping with demonstrations of scenes from his books, but Hadrian discovered that if he released some of his magic Lockhart would recoil and leave him alone. According to Death his magic and aura were capable of frightening others due to the reaper power he had.   

He kept an eye on Ginny and was really starting to regret that he hadn't just tried to take the book away from her on the train. The horcrux was burrowing deeper into her and he definitely knew that he couldn't just take it from her now. And to make matters worse he was beginning to see pieces of Ginny’s soul break off and travel along the strands and enter the book. Ginny was using the journal as a diary, pouring her soul into it, literally. He just didn't know why the horcrux was doing it. From what he knew about horcruxes they didn't act like this.

Luna began spending a lot of time with Ginny and would invite her to join them at the Ravenclaw table, but from what Hadrian could see, Ginny wasn't talking to anyone else. The others either noticed that Hadrian was worried about Ginny or found the girl’s behavior strange themselves because Neville offered to keep an eye on her in the Gryffindor common room and Hermione started studying with her in the library. He even saw Draco walk her down to the dungeons for her potions class. But despite this he could see the effect slowly beginning to affect her physically.

By the time Halloween came around Ginny was barely aware of her surroundings and she looked sickly, her skin pale with dark bruises under her eyes. The Weasley twins, Fred and George, noticed their sister’s behavior and began sitting with her, trying to cheer her up, but nothing seemed to work.

On the day of the Halloween feast Ginny was nowhere in sight and Hadrian was worried. He told his friends that he was going to walk around the castle and see if he could find her.

“I’ll come with you,” volunteered Luna leaping up. Hadrian let her lead the way as they began walking.

“Do you know where she is?” Hadrian asked after a few minutes.

“I think so,” said Luna, “You’re going to save her?”

“Yeah,” said Hadrian, “I’m going to try, but I don’t know what to do. Not yet at least.”

“I’m sure you’ll figure it out,” said Luna, her voice filled with certainty. This encouraged Hadrian greatly considering who was speaking. “And you plan on saving him?”

Hadrian was hardly surprised to find out that Luna knew about him and so didn’t bother to try and deny it.

“I’m planning on saving him,” said Hadrian, “Voldemort is the enemy, but I believe that Tom Riddle is not.”

They walked in silence for a little longer before Hadrian caught sight of something strange.

“Oh fuck,” he hissed and broke into a run, Luna following on his heels. The hallway was filled with water and he splashed through it as he ran to Ginny who stood, head resting against her chest, clutching the book in front of a message written in blood: The Chamber of Secrets has been opened. Enemies of the heir, beware. Next to the message was a bundle hanging from a torch which he realized was Filch’s cat, Mrs. Norris. A quick glance with his sight showed him that the cat wasn’t dead, just petrified.

He grabbed Ginny by the shoulders, but she didn’t respond. Her hands were covered in blood and there was a pile of dead chickens at her feet.

“Ginny?” said Luna leaning over Hadrian’s shoulder to look at the girl, but she didn’t respond.

Hadrian heard a large crowd coming down the hall and knew that the feast must have ended. He couldn’t allow Ginny to be seen like this.

“Luna go,” he told her, “I’ve got this.”

Luna nodded and took off down the hall in the opposite direction of the coming crowd. Hadrian vanished the chickens before pulling out his invisibility cloak and tossing it over himself and Ginny, willing the cloak to be able to cover them both. He could feel the fabric respond to his plea as it seemed to almost adjust itself to cover both him and Ginny.  He silently cast a feather-light charm and a silencing charm and then picked up Ginny bridal style and took off down the hall.

He needed somewhere safe to take her where he could try to figure out what to do. Instantly Death started whispering directions in his head and he took off to the seventh floor.

 _“Stop here,”_ said Death and he did even though the stretch of hallway was empty with no doors. _“Pace back and forth three times while thinking about what you need.”_

Hadrian did feeling foolish, but when he turned to face the wall after the third time a door had appeared and he tore it open and ran in. The room was small with high ceilings and long windows streaming in dim light. The walls and floor were a pale gray and there was a fireplace already lit. In front of the fire was a large pale red couch.

 _“Welcome to the Room of Requirement,”_ said Death, _“it can be anything you want and can conjure just about anything except food.”_  

He walked in and gently placed Ginny down on the couch then pulled the invisibility cloak off of them before sitting on the edge next to her. He waved his hand over her hands, which were still clutching the diary, and cleaned the blood off them. Without the blood it was easier to see just how hard she was gripping the book, her knuckles white.

Hadrian lowered his Sight, bracing himself for what he was about to see. It was even worse than before, the journal’s magic entwined with Ginny’s, but as he watched some of it was retreating back to the book. The magic from the book and the horcrux must have managed to take control of Ginny, but only temporarily. She was still fighting, but Hadrian didn’t know how long it would be before the journal took full control of her.

Which didn’t make sense, why did the journal want to take control of her? It had to do with the Chamber of Secrets, that’s what Ginny’s message said. That the chamber had been opened. He had read about the chamber in _Hogwarts, a History_. Salazar Slytherin had had a falling out with the other three Hogwarts founders over whether to accept muggleborns into the school. Slytherin left the school, but supposedly he left a monster in a chamber that only his heir could control and his heir could use it to rid the school of muggleborns. But the school had been searched multiple times and no such chamber had been found so the story was considered to be just a myth.

But if there was a Chamber of Secrets, Tom Riddle may have found it when he was at Hogwarts, after all, he was the heir of Slytherin. He must have laced the diary with dark magic so that it would compel whoever had it to open the chamber. Typically such magic was near impossible and wouldn’t last for so many years, but the book was also a horcrux. It was like a living thing, able to sustain the magic and use Riddle’s knowledge of the chamber to force Ginny to open it, weakening her enough for Riddle to take over.

Hadrian sighed and leaned back. Knowing why the journal was acting the way it was still wouldn’t help him stop it from draining Ginny. He reached out with his magic and tried to pull some of the dark energy away from Ginny, choosing one strand of magic to focus on, but as soon as he started to pull on it he felt as though he wore punched. The air left him and pain raced through his skull centered around his scar. Hadrian recoiled so fast that he fell off the edge of the couch, breathing hard. He reached up to touch his scar and his fingers came away with blood.

Okay, so that definitely wasn't going to work. He sat up slowly and examined Ginny. He could try using his reaper blade to cut it out, but he didn’t think he could do that without damaging Ginny’s soul. If he managed to cut out the magic from the diary and left Ginny’s soul fractured, the same thing that happened to Tom Riddle would happen to her; she would lose her sanity. It would be as though she had created multiple horcruxes just with all her soul in her body, fractured into pieces. Yong had told him that souls constantly became damaged, but they healed over time, but the damage to a soul done by a reaper’s blade could not be undone.

There came a knock at the door surprising Hadrian and a second later Luna stepped into the room, closing the door behind her.

“How is she?” she asked in a quiet voice.

“Not very good,” said Hadrian, “she’s still unresponsive and I’m still unsure about what I’m supposed to do to help her.”

Luna walked over to him and put a hand on his shoulder and he gave her a small smile.

“I’m going to try and remove the diary from her now while she’s weak,” said Hadrian, “I don’t know what else to do. Could you grab her shoulders? She might struggle.”

Luna nodded and went to the end of the couch and put her arms around Ginny’s shoulders. Hadrian knew that it would make more sense for him to be the one to hold Ginny down while Luna got the book since he was stronger, but he didn’t want to risk Luna coming into contact with the book.

“She’s surrounded by wrackspurts,” commented Luna, “they are making her brain unfocused.”

“Yeah wrackspurts and a teenage dark lord,” replied Hadrian, moving his hands over Ginny’s.

“Ready?” he asked and Luna nodded.

Hadrian cast a silent sleeping spell on Ginny hoping that it would keep her unresponsive until the book was removed. He then reached for the book, prying her fingers off of it. He could feel the book’s magic attacking the sleeping spell, trying to make Ginny wake up and fight for the book. Hadrian fed more energy into the spell, but Ginny’s eyes suddenly snapped open just as he was pulling the book from her hands. Ginny lunged for him and Luna struggled to hold her back. Hadrian hurled the book across the room and grabbed Ginny’s arms, pinning them to her chest as he helped Luna hold her down. Then, just as fast as it started Ginny stopped moving and slumped over, unconscious.

Hadrian looked her over with his Sight, but he didn’t see any new damage.

“I think she’s just exhausted,” he told Luna, “we need to get her back to her dorm room to rest.”

“I can do it,” volunteered Luna, “I know where the Gryffindor Tower is and I’m sure Neville will let me in. Plus you wouldn’t be able to enter the girls dorm since they’re warded against letting boys in.”

Hadrian nodded and put another feather-light charm on Ginny and then helped Luna pick her up.

“Thanks Luna,” he said giving her a peck on the forehead. He then pulled his invisibility cloak out and covered them with it and opened the door for them.

Once they were gone he walked over and picked up the journal and examined it. The only writing he could see in the entire journal was T.M. Riddle, but he had seen Ginny writing in it. He tried several revealing spells but nothing happened. He needed to test this out. The room responded to his thoughts and the couch was suddenly replaced with a desk with ink and quills. He sat down at the desk and dipped a quill in ink. He opened the journal and held the quill over it, allowing a drop of ink to fall onto the page. Nothing happened for a moment, but then the ink vanished as though sucked into the page.

Hadrian thought for a moment before writing, “Hello, Tom Riddle.”

The words seemed to shimmer for a moment before they to sank into the page. Then new words oozed out of the page.

_“It appears you have me at a disadvantage. You know who I am, but I do not know who you are.”_

The words faded as Hadrian began to write a reply.

“I’m Hadrian Peverell.”

_“Hello, Hadrian Peverell. I have heard much about you. How did you come by my diary?”_

“Funny story,” wrote Hadrian, “I took it from a girl named Ginny. I believe you know her, she has a fiery soul and no doubt is brave and righteous judging by how fast she was sorted into Gryffindor, but she hasn’t been herself lately. Possibly because of this journal feeding off of her like a parasite.”

There was a pause before Riddle responded.

_“How much do you know?”_

“I know a lot of things Tom. For instance I know that you’re a horcrux and I know who you became in the future.”

_“You know my history.”_

“Yes, and I know what happens to you.”

_“What do you know about Harry Potter?”_

The question shocked Hadrian for a moment and when he didn’t respond Riddle kept writing.

_“Ginny told me about him and that night.”_

So Riddle must have been curious about what happened to his counterpart and asked Ginny for information and she told him the same story that could be found in most history books. That Harry Potter defeated the Dark Lord Voldemort when he was a baby. But what Ginny must have failed to mention was that Harry Potter and Hadrian Peverell were the same person.

Hadrian could have laughed.

“He’s of no importance,” he wrote, “history knows nothing about him or what really happened.”

_“Then what happened?”_

“That’s a story for the future Tom.”

He closed the journal and put it in his bag then returned to the Ravenclaw common room. It took him longer than normal because without his cloak he was forced to double back a few times to avoid being caught out after curfew. When he finally made it back Luna was waiting for him with his cloak.

“Ginny is fine,” she said handing him the cloak, “she’s resting.”

“Good,” said Hadrian folding up the cloak. “She needs it.”

“What are you going to do with the diary?” asked Luna.

“Keep it safe and out of anyone else’s hands,” replied Hadrian, “hopefully distance and time will help Ginny. Once the hold the book has on her has weakened I can try to remove the magic again.”

Luna nodded, “I’ll keep an eye out on her.”

“Thanks Luna,” he said before heading to his dorm room. He placed the book in his trunk and checked that his protective wards were still strong. He then pulled on his cloak and left the dorm room. He had to start looking for the Chamber of Secrets to see if Ginny really had opened it.   


	18. Chapter Eighteen

The next day the only thing that the school was talking about was the message and the Chamber of Secrets. Hadrian had passed the spot in the hall and saw Filch scrubbing the wall, but the message didn't seem to be coming off. Filch would glare at everyone that passed and Hadrian knew that his mood wouldn't improve until he had Mrs. Norris back. Mrs. Norris was going to be fine once the mandrakes growing in the greenhouses matured and could be made into a brew to revive her. 

Hadrian hadn't found the chamber yet, the night before he wasn't able to look for very long before he was hit with exhaustion. Trying to remove the diary’s hold on Ginny had taken more out of him than he had realized.  

He went to the Great Hall for breakfast the next day and saw that Neville and Luna were already sitting with Ginny at the Ravenclaw table. Hadrian joined them, sitting across from Ginny and was soon joined by Hermione and Draco.

Ginny still looked tired and slightly dazed as Luna chatted to her. Hadrian examined her with his Sight, but there wasn't much of a change. He had to tell himself not to worry, at least not yet, it had been less than twelve hours. It would take time before he would be able to see changes. 

Fred and George stopped by the table to say hello to Ginny and then they all headed to class. Hadrian had Quidditch practice after class and he noticed Ginny watching him. He frowned, he had never seen her near the Quidditch field before except when the others insisted she come to the games to cheer on Hadrian and Draco, who had made the Slytherin team as the seeker. 

When practice ended he walked over to her and he couldn't shake the feeling that she knew he had the diary. 

“Hey Ginny,” he greeted her, “do you play Quidditch?”

“I’ve played with my brothers,” she said, her voice quiet and her eyes never leaving Hadrian’s. He thought she looked accusing.

“Then I bet you're good,” continued Hadrian ignoring the way she was looking at him. “What position do you play?” 

“Chaser,” said Ginny.

“You should try out next year,” said Hadrian, “I’m sure you'll make it.”

They walked in silence back to the castle. Ginny didn't take her eyes off of Hadrian the entire time. Hadrian was revealed when he spotted Luna and left Ginny with her. He needed to look for the chamber and examine the diary some more and he couldn't do that with Ginny nearby. 

He went to the section of hall with the message and walked around. The message was still there, but the water was gone. Where had the water come from? He spotted a girls bathroom and knocked. When he didn't get a response he walked in. The floor in the bathroom was dry and it appeared empty. He began to look around when he heard a scream. He caught sight of the ghost of a young girl dive into one of the toilets, splashing water everywhere, forcing him to jump back. 

Hadrian made a muffled sigh.

“Hello?” he called, “I’m not going to hurt you, or make you move on or anything, unless you want to move on?”

He moved closer to the stall and peered in, but he couldn’t see the ghost. 

“Hello?” he called again. “Are you still there?” 

The ghost stuck her head out of the toilet and stared at him through her glasses. 

“I’m Hadrian,” he introduced himself with a grin. “What’s your name?”

“Why do you care?” said the ghost sounding angry. “You just want to make fun of me.” “Why would I want to make fun of you?” asked Hadrian as the ghost floated out of the toilet.

“Everybody makes fun of me!” shrieked the ghost, “They come to laugh at Moaning Myrtle!” 

“I’m not here to make fun of you Myrtle,” said Hadrian gently, “I was hoping you could tell me about Halloween night.” 

“Halloween?” said Myrtle, “I went to Sir Nicholas’ Deathday Party and Peeves made from of him, he always does, so I came back here to my favourite toilet.”

“And let me guess,” said Hadrian, “you flooded the bathroom.”

Hadrian was disappointed, it sounded like the water had nothing to do with the Chamber. But Ginny had to have written that message in that location for a reason. He had to believe that it wasn’t just random, otherwise he had nothing to go on.

“Myrtle,” he asked slowly, “if you don’t mind me asking, how did you die?”

Myrtle’s whole aspect changed immediately. She looked as though she had never been asked such a flattering question.

“Ooooh, it was dreadful,” she said with relish. “It happened right in here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I’d hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a  _ boy _ speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then-” Myrtle swelled importantly, her face shining. “I  _ died _ .” 

That must have been Riddle speaking in parseltongue thought Hadrian. He knew that the monster had to be a snake for Slytherin’s heir to be able to control it and that the entrance had to only open with parseltongue. 

“How exactly did you die?” he asked Myrtle, though he could already guess the answer.

“I have no idea,” said Myrtle in a hushed tone, “I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away…” she looked dreamily at Hadrian. “And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she’d ever laughed at my glasses.” 

“I’m sure she was,” said Hadrian with a chuckle, “but that was  _ decades _ ago Myrtle, Olive Hornby is long gone. Why are you still here?”  

Myrtle frowned at him as though she didn’t understand what he was asking her.

“Why do you stick around as a ghost if people just make fun of you? Don’t you want to move on?” he asked. 

“I-I don’t know,” said Myrtle uncertainty, “I mean, I like my toilet.”

“Really?” asked Hadrian skeptically, “I mean, listen to yourself, you’re spending your afterlife stuck in a school with mean students, because you like the  _ toilet _ you  _ died _ in? If I were you, I’d want to move in.” 

Myrtle looked down at the floor, “I don’t actually know how to move on,” she admitted after a moment. 

“I can help you,” said Hadrian, “When I came in here, you fled from me, do you know why?”

“You seem strange,” said Myrtle leaning closer to examine him, “You reminded me of when I died and that I shouldn’t be here.” 

“That’s because I’ve been touched by Death,” explained Hadrian, “and now I have reaper powers. I can help you move on.”

“How?” said Myrtle frowning.

Hadrian reached for his reaper’s blade but hesitated a moment. He didn’t want to frighten Myrtle by pulling a weapon on her. A blade was needed to help remove the soul from the body, but Myrtle didn’t have a body anymore, so did he really need a weapon? Yong had transferred its blade easily and Hadrian had changed his blade when he first got it. 

He pulled his reaper’s blade out, but instead of a dagger it was a round stone with flickering shadows. Myrtle leaned closer to look at it. 

“What is it?” she asked.

“It’s a tool used by reaper’s to collect souls,” Hadrian told her, “if you let me, I can collect your soul and you’ll get to finally move on. May I?”

Myrtle looked uncertain.

“It’s time Myrtle,” said Hadrian, “you need to move on to something better.”

Myrtle nodded and Hadrian held up the stone. He reached out and pulled Myrtle towards the stone. Myrtle’s form glowed and her features faded before being drawn into the stone. The stone heated up slightly and the swirling shadows began moving faster for a moment before returning to normal. Hadrian stared at the stone, watching the swirling shadows for a moment before drawing it back into him. 

He sighed and turned to examine the bathroom. Myrtle's description of her death sounded like a basilisk, which was one of the things he had considered. A basilisk's gaze was fatal, except when it was seen through a reflection, then it petrified the person. Mrs. Norris must have seen the basilisk in the waters reflection. 

Hadrian walked in front of Myrtle’s old stall. She would have had a view of the sinks when she opened the door. He examined the sinks and quickly found a small carved snake. One of Slytherin’s heirs must have added it when plumbing was put in the school. 

He hesitated only a moment before hissing,  _ “Open.” _

The tap glowed with a brilliant white light and began to spin. Then the sink began to move, the sink sank out of sight, leaving a large pipe exposed. Large enough for Hadrian to enter. He put on his cloak, but didn’t turn invisible and he stepped into the pipe and began slowly floating down after closing the chamber behind him. 

The pipe was long and seemed to go on and on before he finally got to the bottom which was covered in the skeletons of small rodents. Hadrian floated around the ground not wanting to alert the basilisk to his presence if he could help it. He knew he could try talking to the snake, but he wasn’t sure if it would simply attack him on sight, and he really didn’t want to know what would happen to him if he looked into its eyes or was bitten by its venomous fangs.

It was dark, but he had no problems seeing and he saw a huge snake skin, of a vivid, poisonous green, lying curled and empty across the tunnel floor. The basilisk must have been at least twenty feet long. 

He continued down the tunnel as it twisted and turned until he came to a solid wall with two entwined serpents carved into it with glinting emeralds set in their eyes. 

_ “Open,” _ he hissed and the serpents parted as the wall cracked open, the halves sliding smoothly apart. 

He walked into the chamber which was long and dimly lit with towering stone pillars entwined with serpents. The ceiling was so high that he couldn’t see it. The columns cast shadows through the odd, greenish gloom that filled the place. At the other end of the chamber was an enormous statue of Salazar Slytherin himself. 

Hadrian saw no sight of the basilisk and wondered if it was even in the chamber or if it was roaming through the school at that very minute. If the chamber was connected to the school’s plumbing then the serpent could travel anywhere through the pipes in the walls. 

He began walking along the chamber examining it when his eyes caught on one of the columns. He squinted at the column; something was off about it. A second later he realized that it was a slightly different color from the rest of the columns.

_ “Open,” _ he hissed just to try something and to his surprise a section of the column opened up to reveal a spiral staircase leading down. He climbed down the staircase and entered a study with dark green walls, gray stone floors and dark wood furniture. There was a fireplace that lit when he entered with a couple of green upholstered chairs in front of it. There was a desk, a potions area, and lots of bookshelves with a large variety of tomes and scrolls. This had to be Salazar Slytherin’s private study. 

He picked up one of the scrolls and opened it. He had already started reading it before he realized that it wasn’t in English or even a recognisable language, yet he could read it just fine. 

_ “Does parseltongue have a language?”  _ he asked Death.

_ “Yes,”  _ said Death,  _ “it was converted into its own written language many centuries ago.”  _

He began looking through the books before he realized that he had to get back to the Ravenclaw dorm room, it was getting late and he had agreed to work on his potions essay with Hermione. 

He reluctantly left the study, keeping an eye out for the basilisk as he left the chamber sealing it behind him. If this was the only way into the chamber, then the basilisk couldn’t get out and it wouldn’t matter that it was traveling through the pipes, as long as this entrance stayed closed, the school would be safe. 

Hadrian walked back to the dorm room, getting there just before curfew, and completed his essay with Hermione. He didn’t want to go to bed yet so he went up and grabbed the Book of the Dead from his trunk and a quill and some parchment so he could continue working on translating it.

He didn’t realize until he was about to write that he had picked up Tom Riddle’s diary and was about to write in it. He pulled back and stared at the diary in surprise. What was he doing? Now that he knew what he was looking for he could feel the strands of magic urging him to write in the book, to pour his soul into it. 

He easily batted away the magic and blocked it from his soul. He spent a few minutes making sure that his magic was safe and protecting him before picking up the journal again.

“Nice try Tom,” he wrote, “but you’ll have to try harder than that.”

_ “Can you blame me for trying?”  _ came Tom’s reply,  _ “And don’t worry, I don’t give up easily.” _

“I wouldn’t expect you to,” wrote Hadrian with a chuckle. 

Hadrian wrote back and forth with Tom for most of the night, occasionally he felt Tom try to reach out and latch onto his magic, but each time he easily stopped his efforts and reprimanded him. 

When he finally put the diary back in his trunk and locked it up, he felt more certain than ever that he was making the right choice in working to restore Tom Riddle.    


	19. Chapter Nineteen

Over the next few weeks Hadrian saw some improvement in Ginny. She began talking more and didn’t look as sickly. Every once and awhile Hadrian would catch her watching him and he could practically see her thoughts as she wondered where the diary was, but then she would seem to snap out of it.

One Friday during lunch Draco stormed into the Great Hall and slammed his bag down onto the table next to Hadrian who raised an eyebrow at him.

“Occamy egg shampoo!” he cried in frustration.

“A very bad idea,” said Hadrian, “What exactly is this about?”

“Lockhart, who else?!” exclaimed Draco sitting down. “He wants to start a line of hair care products, calls it his _secret desire_ , with shampoo made from occamy eggs!”

“Are we sure that he’s not suicidal?” asked Hadrian.

“That’s incredibly dangerous! Occamy are very protective of their eggs” said Hermione in alarm, “Not to mention its illegal!”

Hermione had been rather smitten with Lockhart at the beginning of the year like most of the school’s female population and some of the male, but she quickly lost respect for Lockhart. It hadn’t helped that Hadrian spent the entire class whispering in her ear about why everything Lockhart said was wrong.  

“Aren’t occamy eggs made of silver?” asked Ginny, “Who could afford to buy that?”

“Who would want to?” said Neville.

“I bet the Malfoys would,” said Hadrian grinning at Draco who scowled. “How long do you spend on your hair every morning Draco?”

Hadrian reached over to ruffle Draco’s gelled hair, but the blond ducked out of the way.

“I would never use occamy shampoo!” said Draco indignantly.

“What do you think Dumbledore was thinking when he hired Lockhart?” asked Ginny and they all glanced up at the teacher’s table where the headmaster sat.

“That the man is too big of an idiot to be working for Voldemort,” said Hadrian, “and that it would be amusing.”

“That sounds like a sadly accurate description,” said Neville with a sigh. “What do you think Luna?”

Luna looked up from where she was reading _The Quibbler_ , which Hadrian had learned was written by her father.

“Yes,” she stated and then turned to Hadrian. “You should teach us.”

“Yes!” exclaimed Hermione in excitement, startling Hadrian. “You should! We need to do something, I was talking to some older students and we haven’t learned anything that we’re supposed to be learning. If this keeps up, we’ll forever be behind in Defense.”

“You really want me to teach you?” said Hadrian in surprise and his friends nodded. “Alright then, if Luna says I should, then why bother arguing? When should we start?”

“We have a break now,” said Draco and Hadrian could see how excited his friends were and felt himself growing excited as well.

“Okay, I know a place we can go,” he said standing up and the others followed him.

They waved to Fred and George as they left the Great Hall and Hadrian lead them to the Room of Requirement, Luna skipping ahead. Hadrian told the others some about the room before pacing in front of it three times.

When they entered the room it had transformed into a training room just like he had wanted. It was long with tall ceilings and large windows showing different areas of the school grounds with the house banners hanging on the walls between the windows.

On the far left there were chalkboards, a few chairs and a bookcase full of what he assumed would be Defense books. In the middle was a dueling stage. On the fair right there were training dummies they could use spells on.

“Perfect,” said Hadrian with a grin.

He started with some basic instruction, but quickly moved into having them actually perform the spells. Hadrian quickly learned that he could use his Sight to watch his friends perform magic and use what he saw to help guide them and their magic. He even helped nudge their magic in the right direction a few times and helped give them hints to become more in tune with their magic. Once they knew how to direct their magic they seemed to pick up the spells quickly.

They began going to the Room of Requirement everyday on their breaks to train. Hadrian cautiously began teaching them spells that were considered to be darker in nature by the Ministry, and his friends seemed eager to learn them, none of them commenting that it was dark magic.

One day when Hadrian was demonstrating a cutting spell on a dummy there was a knock on the door and Fred and George walked in.

“Knock knock,” they called walking in grinning.

“What are you doing here?” Ginny asked her brothers in surprise.

“Following you little sister,” said George.

“We’ve been curious where you keep disappearing to,” said Fred.

“This is the Lockhart’s an Idiot Club,” said Hadrian grinning at them, “name pending. We’re teaching ourselves Defense since if this trend continues we’ll never have a competent teacher. Want to join us?”

“Of course!” the twins chorused, grins widening as they pulled out their wands and joined them. After that the twins began joining them on all their breaks.

They began working on other subjects besides Defense and they expanded their training area to include a potions area, a greenhouse, and more bookshelves were added along with tables.  

They would meet in the room to do their assignments and then train. Hadrian learned that the twins were brilliant at creating spells and potions, constantly trying to come up with ideas for pranks. They all began working to create new spells and Hadrian began teaching them Latin to help as well as how to sense magic. He couldn’t induce the Sight in them, but he could help them feel the magic around them.

Hadrian could see real improvement in all of them and he could see that they were really trying. Neville began doing better in potions and transfiguration and the twins began to work harder to improve their grades which they had never really cared about before.

Sometimes they would simply sit around and chat. Hadrian would tell them about the history of magic and why certain spells and branches were considered dark and why the Ministry banned them. He would share his ideas about unbanning certain magic in favour of regulating it and about the regulations on covens. He would also talk about his ideas about magic and blood and how he believed that magic was more important than blood and the ideas of pureblood supremacy.    

When Christmas break came they all signed up to stay at Hogwarts and spent almost all their time in the Room of Requirement. On Christmas they transformed the room into a cozy living area and opened their presents there and ate their own Christmas feast that they got from the kitchens.

It was the last day of break when Hadrian was surveying everyone practicing and felt himself fill with pride. He thought about Tom, who he had been communicating with almost daily through the diary, and wondered if this was how he felt when he trained the Knights of Walpurgis, a group of students Tom had trained personally and had later became his first Death Eaters.

Immediately after this thought Hadrian felt like he was punched in the gut. Was that what he was doing? Was he creating his inner circle, his own variation of the Death Eaters? No, he wasn’t a dark lord, but was he heading in that direction?

He thought about his friends behaviors, they were eager to learn, but when had they began to become eager for his parise, trying to impress him? When had that look of respect entered their eyes?

They really were becoming his followers he realized, but he wasn’t entirely sure that he wanted to be a dark lord. He wasn’t sure what he should do. Was it really such a bad thing? There was a lot he wanted to change in the wizarding world, and he wouldn’t go down the same path that Tom Riddle did that created the Voldemort that Britain feared. He was planning on bringing back Tom Riddle, and he couldn’t expect Tom to not try and push his agenda and resume using his title as a dark lord to do it. Could he do the same?    

“Just let it happen,” said Luna who had appeared next to him, “don’t fight it.”

“Alright,” said Hadrian, “but only because it’s coming from you little moon.”

Luna grinned before heading over to Neville to ask him to duel.

That night he sat in his bed writing in Tom’s diary, asking him about the Knights of Walpurgis.

“When did you realize that you were becoming a dark lord?” Hadrian asked.

_“My knights were always my followers, that was never a question. I knew that I would use any method to spread my ideas. I worked to become a dark lord. Why?”_

“I think I’m becoming a dark lord,” wrote Hadrian.

_“One does not think that he is becoming a dark lord, he becomes one.”_

“Alright,” wrote Hadrian, “then I am definitely becoming a dark lord.”

He closed the diary, not wanting to see Tom’s response. It was strange seeing the words in writing, but he found that he didn’t mind. The idea of him as a dark lord seemed strange, but he could see it happening, feel it happening. Why fight it? Why not work to expand, to spread his ideas.

He jumped and put the diary away and went to the common room. He needed to talk to Luna. Luna was already waiting in the common room for him and this didn’t even surprise him, he was quickly becoming used to Luna’s unnatural knowledge.

“I’m becoming a dark lord,” he told her and she grinned as though she had been waiting for a long time for him to say just that. “I need to start expanding my ideas, getting them out to the public.”

“I think I can help you with that,” said Luna nodding, “what do you think about having your own newspaper?”

“A newspaper?” asked Hadrian, “Doesn’t it cost a small fortune to get the proper paperwork and permission to have one? Not to mention the Ministry wouldn’t publish something created by schoolchildren.”

“True,” said Luna, “but my father has all the necessary permits for _The Quibbler_ , we could publish our own paper as a branch of _The Quibbler_ without broadcasting our connection to it and we can write with pen names.”

Hadrian stared at Luna in shock. This would allow him to start bringing about real change in the wizarding world. He could campaign for his ideas about dark and light magic without getting in trouble for speaking his mind. Not even Voldemort had managed to do something like this.

“Luna, you are amazing,” he told her causing the girl to grin.

“I know,” she said making him laugh. He grabbed her around the waist and picked her up, twirling her around, both laughing like maniacs.

“I could kiss you!” Hadrian exclaimed.

“Please don’t,” said Luna with a laugh, “I am not in your future in that way and you are not in mine. I’m more of your Bellatrix”

“I would never go against fate, or at least you,” said Hadrian putting her down with a grin.

“You’ll need more followers,” said Luna and Hadrian nodded.

“I’ll take advantage of the fact that Lockhart is a horrible teacher, I’ll invite people to join us for training. But we need to choose carefully. I want people with potential, but I want them to get along with the group. This isn’t the Death Eaters, I won’t operate like that. Tom Riddle didn’t have friends, just followers; I want both.”

“Tom won’t know what to think of you,” said Luna with a giggle.

“He won’t,” said Hadrian, “but that’s already true. Everyone wants to try and understand me. It’s time I finally begin to take a stand, pick my side.”

“We’ll take the Wizarding World by storm,” said Luna.

“They won’t know what hit them,” agreed Hadrian with a grin, a dangerous glint in his eyes, and over his shoulder, Death grinned.  


	20. Chapter Twenty

The first Quidditch match after the break was Ravenclaw against Gryffindor and Hadrian was looking forward to playing against the twins again. He soared through the air high above the field searching for the snitch.

He dodged a bludger and threw a mock glare at Fred and George who both gave him innocent grins. Suddenly the twins eyes widened and their smiles faded.

“Duck!” they both yelled and Hadrian dropped flat against his broom just in time to miss the bludger that had been heading towards his head. What the hell? Fred and George were the Gryffindor beaters and he had eyes on both of them and the Ravenclaw beaters wouldn’t have sent it at him.

As he watched the bludger he had just dodged halted in midair and came flying back towards him. Hadrian swerved to the left to avoid it, but the bludger followed him and he flipped over on his broom to avoid it. He had barely righted himself when he realized that the bludger was coming back. Fred soared up next to him and hit the bludger hard, but it just turned and came back towards Hadrian.

“What the hell!” yelled George hitting the bludger just to have it come back.

“It’s rigged,” said Fred.

“I’ve got this,” said Hadrian, “you guys go back to the game.”

The two looked uncertain, but they flew down towards the rest of the players and the game.

Hadrian flew forward as fast as he could, randomly swerving as the bludger tailed him. He reached out for the magic around the bludger, looking for the spell that was causing it to behave this way. But the magic around the bludger was strange and seemed to slip out of his grasp each time he reached for it. It was like no magic he had felt before, except that wasn’t quiet true he realized. It was familiar, it just wasn’t from a witch or wizard. It was house-elf magic!

Hadrian gave up on trying to remove the spell from the bludger and instead focused on finding the snitch and ending the game. He used his Sight to find the snitch’s magical trail and took off after it. The snitch was low to the ground and Hadrian flew just above the ground after it. He reached for it and grabbed it out of the air and he heard the whistle blow and the announcement that the game was over.

He landed on the ground jumping off his broom and turned to see the bludger still hurling towards him. Rather than try to remove the spell he lifted his hand and destroyed the bludger, turning it to dust. He was immediately surrounded by his teammates, and the twins shoved through the crowd to check on him. Hadrian assured them that he was fine. He really needed to talk to Dobby though, because Hadrian had a feeling that this was his work.

He met up with his friends in the Room of Requirement which was set up with overstuffed armchairs and a large fireplace. They were sipping hot chocolate the twins had picked up from the kitchen. Hadrian leaned forward and instantly had everyone’s attention.

“I need to talk to you guys,” he started, “there are some things that you don’t know, but it’s time I told you. It involves the Chamber of Secrets.”

Hadrian went on to tell them about how Mr. Malfoy slipped the diary to Ginny which had a piece of Tom Riddle, or Voldemort’s, soul in it and how it had forced Ginny to open the Chamber of Secrets without her knowledge. He told them about his discovery of the chamber and how it held a basilisk. He ended by telling them about Dobby and his warning and why he thought Dobby was the one to send the bludger after him.

“I opened the Chamber of Secrets?” said Ginny looking horror-struck.

“No,” said Hadrian his voice filled with conviction. He leaned forward and forced Ginny to look at him. “It wasn’t you Ginny. It was the fragment of Tom Riddle in the diary. Can you even remember anything about Halloween?”

She shook her head, her eyes wide.

“See?” said Hadrian, “That’s because it was Tom, not you. You did nothing wrong.”

“I can’t believe my father did that,” said Draco, looking pale. “Why would he do something like that?”

“I think he wanted to get the Weasleys in trouble,” said Hadrian, “I don’t think he actually knew what the diary was, but I think he knew that it would somehow open the Chamber of Secrets.”

“If my mother found out, she would kill him,” said Draco, “and I can’t believe Dobby either!”

“Dobby was just trying to protect me in his own messed up way,” said Hadrian, “he must still think I’m in danger even though nothing has happened involving the chamber since Halloween. He was hoping I would leave Hogwarts after the bludger attack.”

“Are you still in danger?” asked Neville, sounding slightly nervous.

“I shouldn’t be,” said Hadrian, “I have the diary locked up and you can only open the chamber with parseltongue, and as far as I know that means only me and the fragment of Tom Riddle’s soul in the diary can open it as far as people at Hogwarts go.”

They chatted for a little longer before going to their dorms. Hadrian stayed behind in the Room of Requirement after the others left.

“Dobby,” he called and the house-elf appeared a moment later, looking nervous and not meeting Hadrian’s eyes. “Hello, Dobby. I take it you sent the bludger after me?”

“Dobby just wanted Hadrian Peverell to leave Hogwarts!” the elf squeaked, “Hadrian Peverell is in grave danger!”

“You’ve already told me this Dobby,” said Hadrian patiently, “and I know you probably don’t know much about what’s going on here, but everything is fine. The Chamber of Secrets is closed.”

Dobby’s eyes widened in surprise at the mention of the chamber.

“Yes, I know about the Chamber of Secrets,” said Hadrian, “I know that Mr. Malfoy slipped the diary to Ginny Weasley. But she doesn’t have the diary anymore. I’m safe, or as safe as I can be. Okay, Dobby?”

The house-elf nodded and clasped his hands together and Hadrian gasped and kneeled in front of the elf.

“What happened to your hands?” he asked. Dobby’s hands were covered in white bandages.

“Dobby tried to hurt Hadrian Peverell, Dobby had to punish himself,” said Dobby, “Dobby had to iron his hands.”

“No!” cried Hadrian in alarm, “Dobby, you can’t do that, especially not because of me!”

Hadrian gently took Dobby’s small hands in his own and wrapped his magic around them, healing them. Dobby stared at Hadrian in awe as he removed the bandages from his now healed hands.

“Hadrian Peverell is most kind!” he squeaked and Hadrian chuckled before growing serious.

“Do you injure yourself a lot Dobby?” he asked.

“Dobby has to punish himself,” said Dobby nodding.

“I’m going to figure out something to do to help you,” promised Hadrian, “Now go, before Mr. Malfoy notices that you’re gone and makes you punish yourself again.”

Dobby disappeared with a grin and Hadrian went back to his dorm room.

The next day he discussed with his friends about inviting a few other people to join them in the Room of Requirement for training.

“I was thinking we could see about some more Slytherins,” said Hadrian during breakfast, “since Draco is the only one right now. And we need to work on Hufflepuffs. Any ideas on who we should ask?”

“What about Blaise Zabini and Theodore Nott?” suggested Draco, “As far as Slytherins go they’re not too bad.”

Blaise Zabini was a tall, dark skinned boy with high cheekbones and long, slanting eyes. His mother had been widowed six times, and each time her husband died under mysterious circumstances leaving all their money to their already wealthy wife. There were even rumors that the beautiful witch was actually a succubus which had started the rumor at Hogwarts that Blaise was an incubus.

Theodore Nott was tall and thin with dirty blond hair. He was a quiet boy, more of a loner. Hadrian knew that both his grandfather and father were Death Eaters.

Out of the Slytherins in their year Hadrian would have chosen them as well. Crabbe and Goyle were just thugs, and not very bright. The second year girls only ambition seemed to be to find a wealthy pureblood husband.

“I agree,” said Hadrian, “do you want to invite them to join us later?”

Draco nodded.

“Do you know them?” Hadrian asked the twins.

“We know who they are,” said Fred.

“And we know of them,” said George.

“You can meet them later when you join us on your break,” Hadrian told them and they nodded. The twins break started later than the others. “If they both agree to train with us tonight we can decide if we want them to join us on a regular basis. Everyone agree?”

They all nodded and Luna gave him a thumbs up.

“Does anyone know any possible Hufflepuffs?” he asked the group. “I’m thinking someone older, or a first year, since none of the second years stand out to me.”

“Do you know Cedric Diggory?” asked George, “He’s in our year.”

“Our fathers know each other from working at the Ministry,” said Fred, “he’s not too bad. Smart.”

“I’ve met him a few times,” said Ginny, “he seems nice.”

“He’s the Hufflepuff seeker, right?” asked Draco and the twins nodded.

“I’ll work on talking to him,” said Hadrian, “but let’s start with just inviting Blaise and Theodore tonight.”

Draco ended up having no trouble inviting Theodore and Blaise to join them for training that night, and it was thanks to Lockhart. Lockhart had forced both boys to participate in one of his demonstrations of how he defeated a pack of werewolves, so both boys were quite eager to get the chance to actually learn Defense. Draco brought them to the Room of Requirement where Hadrian already had the others running through drills, casting multiple spells in a row at the training dummies.

Hadrian ended the drills and let the others work on what they wanted in the training room while he worked with Blaise and Theodore, or Theo as he asked to be called, separately. The two Slytherins picked up the spells as fast as the others had under Hadrian’s guidance and Hadrian hoped that they would get along with everyone in the group.   

Hadrian waved to the twins when they arrived and introduced them to Blaise and Theo. The twins then went and joined Hermione and Draco on the dueling stage, splitting up to duel in pairs.

When Hadrian announced that everyone had trained long enough they transformed the room into a comfortable sitting area and Luna and Neville ran to the kitchens to get snacks.

They chatted late into the night and Hadrian watched the two new Slytherin’s interactions with the others and was pleased with what he saw. He would ask the others later, but it seemed to him like they had found two new members for their group. Now he just had to work on talking to Cedric.

The next day after discussing it with the others Hadrian invited Theo and Blaise to join them at breakfast and both boys did. While they ate Hadrian kept an eye on Cedric at the Hufflepuff table and watched as he left the Great Hall. It was Saturday and Hadrian knew that the Hufflepuff team had the Quidditch field booked for practice that morning.

Hadrian waited a little longer before getting up and heading out to the Quidditch field with his broom. When he got to the field he watched the Hufflepuff players for a little while. He managed to catch Cedric’s eye and waved before turning to leave.

“Wait, hang on!” called Cedric, landing and jogging over to him. Hadrian waited for the handsome Hufflepuff to catch up to him. “Where are you going? Aren’t you going to do any flying?”

“I didn’t realize that you guys had the field booked,” said Hadrian, “I must have looked at the schedule wrong. I don’t want to interrupt your practice.”

“You wouldn’t interrupt,” said Cedric, “in fact, would you like to chase the snitch around with me? It would be good practice for both of us.”

“Sure,” said Hadrian with a grin.

Cedric grabbed the snitch out of the Quidditch equipment and released it and the two took off after it. They chased it around the field for a while, but after they both caught it a few times they began to relax some, just swerving around the field and enjoying flying.

“You now the Weasleys don’t you?” Hadrian asked him after a little while.

“Yeah,” said Cedric, “I’ve met them a few times through my father.”

Hadrian nodded, “I’m friends with Fred, George, and Ginny.”

They chatted some more and Hadrian had to agree with Ginny, Cedric was nice. He was also very modest, though Hadrian knew that he was very smart. As they were landing Hadrian turned to Cedric.

“Me and a group of my friends have been meeting to study and work on spells together, especially Defense Against the Dark Arts since Lockhart is certainly not teaching us anything. If you’d like, you should join us sometime.”

Cedric agreed and Hadrian went back to the castle. That night at dinner Cedric came up to him and asked when they were meeting to practice and Hadrian invited him to join them that night. Cedric walked with them to the Room of Requirement and Hadrian watched his eyes widen when the door appeared and they entered the training room.

Hadrian tested Cedric on the dummies to see what he already knew before suggesting some spells for him to work on and going to work with Blaise and Theo.

He walked away as they practiced and surveyed the room. Neville was working with Luna in the greenhouse. Ginny and Hermione were dueling, the twins were huddled together coming up with new spells, and Draco was making potions.

Luna looked up and spotted him and walked over to him.

“Hello little moon,” he greeted her as she stood next to him.

“Hello little Death,” she answered, “surveying your followers?”

Hadrian laughed lightly, “They’re not my followers, yet. I need to earn the title of a dark lord to have followers, and they need to know just what they’re getting into.”

“They will follow you,” said Luna, “in time they will do anything for you.”

“I will treat them fairly,” said Hadrian, “I won’t force them into anything, but I still worry.”

“They don’t know everything about you,” stated Luna and Hadrian nodded. “There’s no need to worry. Now is not the time to reveal your secrets. Continue to build trust and loyalty. The time will come.”

“Will you tell me when the time comes?” asked Hadrian.

“I can if you’d like,” said Luna, “but I think you’ll already know when the time comes.”

Hadrian nodded, not questioning Luna’s vague reply.

“Any other advice?” he asked and Luna thought for a moment before answering.

“Be wary of aurors, they’re part of the Rotfang Conspiracy working to bring down the Ministry from within using dark magic and gum disease,” she replied, “Also, I think you should grow your hair out.”

She reached over and ruffled his hair.

“I don’t know about that Luna,” he said with a grin, “I’ll give it a try, but if I don’t like it I’m chopping it off.”

Luna grinned back at him before skipping back to the greenhouse to rejoin Neville. Hadrian continued to grin as he leaned back and watched his future followers.


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

The rest of the school year went by fast with Hadrian continuing to train the others. Death continued to train Hadrian at night and Hadrian continued to train to fight with his reaper’s blade.

The horcrux in the diary seemed to be going crazy, Hadrian found it trying to infiltrate his magic more often than ever. He guessed that it was growing desperate since it was the end of the school year and would be leaving Hogwarts and the chamber soon. It’s opportunity to release the basilisk was running out.

One day Hadrian returned to his room to find that the wards around his trunk were gone.

 _“It’s the horcrux,”_ said Death, _“it attacked your wards.”_

Hadrian frowned as he redid his wards, doubling them. Whatever spells on the diary that made the horcrux so determined to open the chamber were strong and since the horcrux was alive, it was capable of dismantling magic and manipulating the environment around it.

A few days went by and it was almost the start of finals. Hadrian hadn’t been thinking about the diary until there was an announcement from Professor McGonagall telling all students to return to their dorms.

Hadrian frowned but went back to the Ravenclaw dorm room with Hermione and Luna. When they got there Professor Flitwick was trying to keep order as students demanded to know what was happening.

“Everyone needs to remain calm and stay in the dorms,” Flitwick told them, “I will be leaving to help the other professors.”

“Help with what?” asked a sixth year girl and the question was quickly echoed by other students.

Flitwick looked tired and sighed, “I’m afraid that there has been another message.”

Everyone instantly went quiet to listen, no one needing to ask what message he was talking about.

“And this time, a student was taken into the chamber itself.”

What!? How was that possible!?

Everyone started yelling at once and Flitwick left the dorm, no doubt to meet up with the other teachers.

Hadrian looked at Luna and his fears were confirmed.

“I’ve got this,” he told her and Hermione and ran into his dorm room.

_“How did this happen? How did Ginny get the diary? She was healing!”_

_“The diary has been waiting,”_ said Death, _“and Ginny is still healing. The diary broke through your wards again and then seeked out Ginny’s magical signature. From there it only took Ginny picking it up for the horcrux to tear into the healing wounds in her soul and take over.”_

Fuck you Tom, thought Hadrian. He had been tricked, he had thought that Ginny was safe, that the diary couldn’t get to her. But the whole time it had been biding its time, growing stronger and now Ginny was in the chamber. But it didn’t make sense, why still open the chamber, there wasn’t enough time in the year for the basilisk to wipe out all the muggle-borns.

Suddenly it hit Hadrian and he groaned out loud. He was so stupid! How he had not realized what the horcrux was trying to do sooner? It was obvious.

He grabbed everything he would need to enter the chamber and then threw on his cloak, turning invisible. He snuck out of the common room and headed to the girls bathroom walking past the new message written in blood. He was furious as he opened the chamber and flew down the tunnel as fast as he could go, entering the chamber.

He could see at the far end of the chamber in front of the statue was Ginny, lying on the ground. He ran to her, but just as he got to her, a teenage boy stepped out from behind one of the columns. The boy was handsome with pale skin, neat dark brown hair and dark blue eyes. He was wearing older style Slytherin robes.

Hadrian could see Ginny’ life force going into him. He was growing stronger as she grew weaker. He was going to kill her so that he could live.

“Hello, Hadrian,” he said with a smile, “it’s nice to finally see you.”

“Hello, Tom,” replied Hadrian, “I wish I could say the same. This is what you’ve wanted from the beginning, isn’t it? Opening the chamber never truly mattered to you, not in comparison to your real goal. You want to steal Ginny’s life force for your own.”

“You don’t know what it’s like,” said Tom, anger lacing his voice, “being trapped in that diary for so long.”

“You’re half a soul,” said Hadrian, “but you’re more than just that, aren’t you? Tom Riddle preserved his memories in his diary before he put his soul in it. You are more than just a snapshot of Tom, you are him. A horcrux is supposed to just be an object to hold the piece of soul, but you feel alive, and that’s not enough, you want life, for real.”

“This is my chance to try again,” said Tom, “He may have failed, but I won’t.”

“Sorry, Tom,” said Hadrian, “but I won’t let you hurt her, and newsflash, Voldemort’s not dead. He’s alive, barely, but I’m going to help him. I’m going to restore your soul, but I need you to let Ginny go to do that.”

“I can’t do that,” said Tom.

“Yes, you can you idiot!” yelled Hadrian in frustration, “I’m going to fully restore you! Don’t you understand!”

“I don’t want to be restored!” yelled Tom, “I failed once, I refuse to fail again! I have to do this, we were always destined to meet in this chamber.”

Hadrian sighed, “I guess we were, but I’ve gotten pretty good at fucking with fate and I won’t let you do this.”

Tom stared at him, but when he spoke next it wasn’t English, it was parseltongue.

_“Speak to me Slytherin, greatest of the Hogwarts founders.”_

Hadrian watched as the statue’s mouth opened and he saw movement inside. He turned away as he heard the serpent moving and there was a thud as the basilisk came out and landed on the chamber floor.

 _“Distract him,”_ hissed Tom, _“keep him away from me.”_

 _“No!”_ hissed Hadrian, _“Don’t come near me!”_

He saw Tom’s eyes widen in surprise when he spoke in parseltongue, but he also saw the basilisk moving towards him, ignoring his words. Hadrian growled in frustration and pulled out a handheld mirror that he had taken from the dorm room. He held it up and watched the basilisk come towards him and took off running. He knew that a basilisk’s skin was resistant to magic so there was no point in flinging spells at it, it would just tire him out. He needed to wait for an opportunity to strike and he needed to do it fast. If Tom already looked so solid it could only mean that Ginny was close to death.

In the mirror Hadrian saw the basilisk lunging towards him. It was going to kill him, or at least it was going to try. He pointed his wand back, watching the basilisk move closer, its mouth open, and sent fire flying from his hand at the unprotected mouth of the basilisk. The fiendfyre leaped from Hadrian’s wand and with a flick of his wrist it took the shape of a dragon, its wings spread, as the flames smashed into the basilisk. The basilisk’s scales protected itself from the fire, but the fire poured into its open mouth and spread through its body. The fire was burning everything to a crisp, but its skin continued to trap the flames inside its body and stopped it from spreading.

The basilisk cried out in pain, but Hadrian didn’t stop until the basilisk fell silent and stopped moving.

Hadrian had never tried using fiendfyre before, not wishing to burn everything around him, and he knew immediately that he had put more power than needed into the spell, feeling the drain on his magic and he was glad that the basilisks’ fireproof body was able to contain it. He let the fire burn for a few minutes before murmuring the spell to stop the blaze. Smoke billowed out of the basilisks carcass and the whole chamber stank of burnt flesh and meat.  

Hadrian cautiously moved forward, using the mirror to approach the dead basilisk. He called his reaper blade to him in its dagger form and he stabbed the basilisk in its eyes, moving the blade to completely destroy the eye, knowing that its gaze was still lethal even in death. He could feel the basilisk's life energy leave its body and he waved his blade, capturing the energy and pulling it into himself. He felt the energy course through his veins as he ran to Ginny.

He ignored Tom who was staring at him in shock and dropped to his knees next to Ginny. She looked so pale and small laying on the chamber floor. He could feel her life energy draining into Tom.

“This is your last chance Tom,” he said, “give this up.”

“No,” said Tom, his voice quiet.

Hadrian gripped his blade and swung it at Tom so fast that he didn’t even have a chance to try and get out of the way. Hadrian dragged the blade through Tom’s form, which wasn’t entirely solid despite appearing so. Hadrian pulled Tom’s soul towards the blade, but Tom struggled, crying out, as his form began to break apart. Hadrian wrapped his magic around Tom, and pushed in around him, destroying his form until just his glowing soul could be seen. He condensed Tom’s soul into an orb, but didn’t collect it with his blade. Instead he reached out so that it hovered above his hand. Then using the blade he drew out Ginny’s life force and returned it to the girl.

He then held out the mirror and pushed the half of Tom Riddle’s soul into it. He looked at the mirror and for a moment he caught sight of Tom’s reflection gazing back at him, looking angry and betrayed. Then Tom disappeared and Hadrian vanished the mirror to his trunk.

Hadrian went to Ginny and kneeled next to her again. He opened his Sight and was glad to see that her soul appeared fully restored. Though he could still see the marks in her soul from where Tom had been stealing her life force. He reached into himself and pulled out the life force that he had taken from the basilisk and pushed it into her, helping heal the marks. He should have done this sooner, but he had thought wrongly that Ginny was safe and she was healing herself fine with time. If only he had realized what the diary was doing sooner.

Ginny’s eyes opened and widened in alarm for a moment until she saw Hadrian.

“Are you alright?” he asked her, helping her slowly sit up.

“What happened?” she asked, “Where is he?”

“The diary had more influence over you than I realized,” explained Hadrian, “it’s magic called out to you in one last desperate effort.”

Ginny frowned and seemed to be thinking hard.

“I can kind of remember feeling that I needed to go to the Ravenclaw dorms and I remember opening your trunk and seeing the diary. I must have taken it, but everything after that is a blurr. I saw him, I saw Tom Riddle.”

“He was trying to use you to return to life,” Hadrian told her, “he had been trapped in the diary for so long, he saw you as a chance to get out.”

Hadrian followed Ginny’s gaze to where the diary lay discarded on the chamber floor.

“There’s nothing in it now,” he told her, “the horcrux is gone and the spells that forced you to open the chamber were only preserved for so long because of the horcrux.”

“He wanted to live,” said Ginny softly, “I could feel it.”

“Yes,” said Hadrian, “but at the expense of your life, which I would never allow.”

“You’re going to restore him,” said Ginny, stating it as a fact not a question and Hadrian wondered if she had heard him talking to Tom.

“Yes, I want to restore Tom Riddle,” Hadrian told her honestly and Ginny simply nodded.

He offered his hands to Ginny and helped her to her feet. They walked out of the chamber and Hadrian flew them both up the tunnel. They began walking towards the teachers lounge to let them know that Ginny was safe. On their way they passed the Defense classroom and Hadrian paused when he heard movement inside. He looked in and saw Lockhart frantically packing. Hadrian frowned and glanced at Ginny.

“Give me a moment please,” he told her and then slipped into the classroom, closing the door behind him.

“Let me guess,” he said startling Lockhart who whirled around so fast that he nearly tripped on his robes. “You were asked to find Ginny, but instead you’re running. Leaving an eleven year old girl to die.”

“What can I say,” said Lockhart, “things to do, places to go.”

He picked up his suitcase and made to move past Hadrian, but Hadrian reached out and halted him in place with his magic.

“I don’t think so,” said Hadrian, his voice low and dangerous, “I have put up with you and your idiocy all year, I know that you’re a fraud. Some of your books and stories are actually true. All except one little detail; it wasn’t you. You’ve never done anything great in your life, you just steal the accomplishments of others and pass them off as your own for fame and glory.

“I didn’t say anything all year, but now you show your true self. You’re not just a thief, you’re a coward. What kind of man would leave little Ginny Weasley to rot in the Chamber of Secrets? You’ve gone too far this time Lockhart. I can’t let you continue.”

Lockhart’s eyes narrowed as Hadrian spoke and he pulled out his wand, but with an almost lazy wave of his hand, Hadrian sent it flying across the room.

“You specialize in the spell obliviate, do you not? Let’s see how you like being on the other end of it.”

Without even bothering to use his wand Hadrian began erasing Lockhart’s memories. He held Lockhart’s gaze and dove into his mind with legilimency, making sure that he was happy with his work. He drew out of Lockhart’s mind and released the hold his magic had on him.

Lockhart stumbled and blinked in confusion for a moment before bursting into a wide grin at Hadrian.

“Hello!” he said cheerfully, “I’m afraid I don’t know who you are.”

Lockhart’s smile dimmed then and he frowned slightly.

“I don’t know who I am,” he said sounding confused, “Who am I?”

“You?” asked Hadrian raising an eyebrow, his voice dripping disgust. “You’re nothing,” his voice was dismissive and he turned and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Ginny was waiting for him in the hall and he put a hand on her shoulder as they continued walking.

“You’re brave hero has been taken care of,” he told her.

“Is he dead?” Ginny asked and Hadrian was surprised by how calmly she asked the question.

“No,” said Hadrian, “though I wouldn’t say that he’s still Gilderoy Lockhart.”

They made it to the teachers lounge and walked right in. All the teachers were there, including Dumbledore, there were also witches and wizards that Hadrian assumed were aurors. The room was in chaos and Hadrian and Ginny weren't noticed right away, but when they were noticed, the room fell silent for a moment, then everybody started talking at once. Dumbledore managed to gain control and lead them out of the room and to his office.

There Hadrian told Dumbledore about the diary and how it had possessed Ginny and forced her to open the chamber. He pretended to not know anything about who Tom Riddle was and he didn’t go into details about how he killed the basilisk. He met Dumbledore’s gaze knowing that the headmaster was trying to look into his mind, but couldn’t get past his walls. Ginny kept her head down as Hadrian had instructed before they entered the office so that the headmaster couldn’t meet her gaze.

After Hadrian finished talking he was spared from Dumbledore’s questions by the arrival of Lucius Malfoy whom Hadrian knew was on the Board of Governors and was no doubt here to yell at Dumbledore for his incompetence in allowing a student to be taken into the chamber. Malfoy visibly froze when he saw Ginny standing in the office, perfectly fine, his surprise showing obvious through his pureblood mask before he quickly recovered himself.

Hadrian saw Dobby poke his head around Malfoy’s robes and he grinned at the little elf.

“I’m glad you’re here Mr. Malfoy,” said Hadrian, “I have something that I believe is yours.”

He held out the now ordinary diary to Mr. Malfoy who after a moment reached out and snatched it from him. The diary now had a large hole in that Hadrian had created with his magic, though he had told Dumbledore that he had stabbed it with a basilisk fang since that was one way to destroy a horcrux.

Malfoy tossed the diary at Dobby who barely managed to avoid being hit by it. Then he turned to Dumbledore, but Hadrian didn’t bother listening to the conversation. He was too busy indicating for Dobby to open the book, and after a moment, looking confused, the elf did. Hadrian grinned as he saw Dobby’s widen.

“Master has given Dobby gloves,” said Dobby, holding up the pair of black leather gloves Hadrian had taken from his trunk when he had been preparing to go into the chamber. “Dobby has been presented with clothes! Dobby is free!”

Malfoy’s eyes widened and his mouth opened in shock, and then he turned on Hadrian, his eyes blazing with fury.

“How dare you,” he hissed, moving towards Hadrian who was already preparing his magic to defend himself, but he didn’t have to do anything for suddenly Malfoy was hurled across the room and went crashing into a bookshelf.

“No one hurts Hadrian Peverell,” said Dobby stepping in front of Hadrian protectively, and Hadrian couldn’t help but grin down at the house-elf. So he definitely wouldn’t be invited back to Malfoy Manor, but he could still find a way to visit Draco over the summer.  

Just then the office door was thrown open and Mr. and Mrs. Weasley came running in and went straight for their daughter.

Hadrian looked down at Dobby, “Let’s get out of here.”

Dobby nodded and took Hadrian’s hand and then with a snap of his fingers they were standing in the Hogwarts entranceway. Dobby eagerly pulled on the gloves which were much too big for his hands.

“Allow me,” said Hadrian touching the gloves and shrinking them so that they would fit Dobby. Dobby looked down at the gloves, examining his hands before gazing up at Hadrian in wonder.

“Hadrian Peverell is indeed most kind!” he squeaked, “Hadrian Peverell has freed Dobby!”

“Do you know what you’re going to do now?” Hadrian asked him.

“Dobby doesn’t know sir,” replied the elf, “Dobby thinks he may look for a new job where Dobby can be paid.”

“Well if you want a paid job,” said Hadrian, “I would hire you. You’d be paid each week, get time off, and I wouldn’t treat you the same way Malfoy treated you. And you wouldn’t have to wear a pillowcase.”

Dobby looked close to tears as he nodded his head eagerly, “Dobby would be honored to work for Hadrian Peverell.”

“Great!” said Hadrian with a grin, “I just have to give you an order and the deal is set, right?”

Dobby nodded and Hadrian thought for a moment.

“Down in the Chamber of Secrets there is a dead basilisk. As long as it isn’t too hot I want you to go down there and remove the skin and bottle the venom.”

Dobby nodded and disappeared with a snap of his fingers.

 _“I need to start collecting the other horcruxes this summer,”_ he thought to Death.

_“You can start now. Head to the Room of Requirement and enter the Room of Hidden Things.”_

Hadrian frowned but listened to Death and thought about the Room of Hidden Things as he paced across the hall. When the door appeared it led to a room filled with piles upon piles of things. He began wandering through the piles examining the items. There was broken furniture, what looked like thousands of books, bottles of congealed potions, dragon egg shells, wands, jewelry, cages, broomsticks and so much more. He even saw what looked like a vanishing cabinet.  

_“There’s a horcrux in here?”_

_“Yes, you should be able to sense it.”_

Hadrian reached out with his magic, searching the room, but he immediately felt overwhelmed. So many of the items in the room had magic surrounding them. He pulled his magic back in and tried a different approach. He began searching small sections of the room at a time, casting his magic out like a net.

He wasn’t sure how long he did this before he felt the horcrux. He knew instantly that it was the horcrux; the piece of Tom Riddle’s soul in it seemed to cry out for him and he found himself tearing through the room, climbing a pile of items to get at it. His hand closed around what looked like a tirra and he felt warmth spread through his body, his magic calling out to the horcrux. He had occasionally felt something like this with the diary, but that horcrux had been surrounded by so many dark spells that it was harder to feel the piece of Tom's soul within it.  

He began examining the horcrux, it was some sort of silver tiara with a blue oval gem and it had an eagle design etched onto it. It had the quote _‘Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure’_ engraved on it. Hadrian’s eyes widened when he realized what it was that he was holding. It was the lost item of Ravenclaw, Rowena Ravenclaw’s diadem. It hadn’t been seen for years; not since Ravenclaw’s daughter Helena stole the diadem. But Tom Riddle had found it and turned it into a horcrux.

He returned to the Ravenclaw dorm with the diadem and assured Hermione and Luna that Ginny was fine, though Luna seemed to already know.

Hadrian went to his dorm and opened his trunk and pulled out the mirror. There was no sign of Tom in it. Without the dark spells he could feel the horcrux’s full power and he had to resist the urge to run his hands along the glass surface. He placed the diadem with the mirror, but hesitated before closing the trunk.

“I’m going to bring you back,” whispered Hadrian, “but I’m going to do it right. I’m going to make you whole again.”     


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

Hadrian sat outside a small café in Venice sipping a cappuccino. It was a few weeks into summer and he had been traveling around collecting items he would need for the ritual to resurrect Tom Riddle living in the apartment in his trunk.

It was early, but he could already feel the sun heating everything, promising to be another hot day. He had three newspapers spread out before him, a muggle newspaper from London, the _Daily Prophet_ , and _The Quibbler_ . Each of the papers had one thing in common, they each had articles about Sirius Black’s escape from Azkaban. Though the muggle newspaper didn’t go into much detail and didn’t say where he had escaped from and _The Quibbler_ said that Sirius Black was Stubby Boardman, the former lead singer of The Hobgoblins.

Hedwig flew down and landed in front of him on the table and Hadrian chuckled quietly at the startled cries from the few people around him. He took the letter from Hedwig and held his hand under the table and summoned an owl treat for her. Once she had eaten the treat and nibbled at his earlobe she took off into the air.

Hadrian opened the letter and smiled when he saw that it was from the Ginny and the twins. The Weasley family had won the _Daily Prophet_ Prize Draw and had used the money to visit their eldest son Bill Weasley in Egypt. It sounded like they were enjoying Egypt, exploring the ancient tombs. Hadrian thought that he would have to visit Egypt sometime.

He heard giggling and looked up to see a grow up of girls watching him as they walked by. He grinned at them and they blushed as they giggled and rushed off making him chuckle to himself.

As the girls disappeared a young girl stepped towards him. She had blonde hair in braids and wore scuffed jeans. She grinned at him revealing a gap between her front two teeth. Without a word Hadrian pulled out a large book and put it on the table, flipping it open to a blank page then placed a quill next to it. The reaper stepped forward and picked up the quill and wrote in the language of the dead before pulling out a reaper blade in the form of a small knife. She touched the blade to the paper and a sigil flared to life on it.

Hadrian nodded his thanks to the reaper and she disappeared among a group of American tourists.

Hadrian had started a book to record all the reapers as part of his job as Head Reaper. He was having all the reapers give him their name, what type of people they reaped and a piece of their magical signature. The magical signature was the sigil and it would allow Hadrian to contact the reaper. The book was enchanted to have a new page appear for each reaper and it would be able to hold as many pages needed without growing in size.  

He put the book away as he sipped his drink and picked up the _Daily Prophet_. He had enchanted the paper so that muggles couldn’t see the moving pictures. On the front was a picture of Sirius Black, laughing maniacally and looking utterly insane.

_“I want to talk.”_

Not even a minute later Death walked out of the café sipping a drink and sat down in the empty seat across from Hadrian. Death had taken the appearance of his old roommate and friend, Brady.

“What’s up buttercup?” Death asked and then frowned. Hadrian raised an eyebrow at him. “Okay, I’m never saying that again.”

“Thanks, I appreciate that,” said Hadrian with a small grin.

“Seriously though,” said Death, “what do you want to talk about?”

“Sirius Black,” said Hadrian, tapping the picture. “What’s his story?”

“He was a Gryffindor in a family of Slytherins. He was friends with your father.”

“I know that,” said Hadrian. He reached into his bag and pulled out a photo album Hagrid had given him. He flipped through it until he came to a picture from his parents wedding and pointed to the handsome smiling man next to his father. “That’s him.”

Death leaned over to look at the picture and nodded. Hadrian examined the picture for another minute before putting the album away. He didn’t want any muggles to see the moving pictures and have to obliviate them. In the album the picture of Sirius Black looked almost unrecognizable to the man in the paper.

“What changed?” asked Hadrian, “How did he go from my father’s best man to being sent to Azkaban for betraying them?”

“Well, he didn't actually betray them,” said Death, “that was Peter Pettigrew.”

“Wait, what?” said Hadrian nearly choking on his drink. “You mean the Peter Pettigrew that Sirius Black killed?”

“Oh, Peter Pettigrew is alive,” said Death casually.

Hadrian just stared at Death in silence for a moment, calmly sipping his drink.

“Wow,” he said slowly, “way to just drop a bombshell. I mean seriously, you can't just tell me this stuff like that.”

“How am I supposed to tell you?” asked Death raising an eyebrow.

“I don't know, okay,” he said slightly exasperated, “but not like that. Now please explain.”

“When Dumbledore cast the fidelius charm Sirius Black volunteered to be your parents’ secret keeper, and he was, in the beginning. But then Peter Pettigrew suggested that he should be the secret keeper because Black was too obvious a choice. They made the switch in secret.”

“You said Black was there that night,” said Hadrian thoughtfully, “he knew that Pettigrew betrayed them so he went after him. Black caught up to Pettigrew and a dozen muggles and supposedly Pettigrew ended up dead. How did Pettigrew survive?”

“When Pettigrew saw that Black had caught up to him, he started yelling, asking how Black could betray Lily and James, then caused the explosion that killed the muggles and disappeared in his animagus form, a rat,” explained Death.  

“Pettigrew was an animagus?” asked Hadrian in surprise, “What about Black?”

“Black was also an animagus,” said Death, “a black dog. Your father was a stag. They went through the transformation for their friend Remus Lupin. He was a werewolf.”

“And werewolves don’t harm animals,” said Hadrian in understanding, “so they could stay with him during the full moon. That’s also how Black escaped Azkaban, isn’t it? Dementors would have ignored an animal because they can’t sense them.”

Death nodded as Hadrian’s wristwatch made a small chirp and he picked up the papers and put them away. That would be Dobby returning. He got up throwing away his empty cup and walked into one of Venice’s many alleys. He pulled out his trunk, enlarged it and placed it on the ground. After setting up several wards that would prevent anyone from going near the trunk he walked into it. Up until that summer he hadn’t had much of a chance to enjoy his apartment. He walked into the living room which had dark wood floors, blue walls and a large fireplace. The furniture was dark wood with dark blue upholstery and the walls were lined with bookshelves. He had enchanted the ceiling to look like the night sky, filled with thousands of stars. There were windows enchanted to show different locations around the world, including stonehenge and a view of Hogwarts.  

Dobby was waiting for him in the middle of the room. He was no longer wearing the dirty old pillowcase that he had worn with the Malfoys. Instead he was wearing mismatched clothing that he had bought with his salary.

“Did you find it Dobby?” he asked and the house-elf nodded eagerly.

“Yes sir, Dobby found the ring, but Dobby was unable to retrieve it sir. The ring is cursed so Dobby did what sir asked and did not touch it.”

“Good,” said Hadrian, “you’ll take me to it.”

The two left the trunk and Hadrian shrunk it down before taking Dobby’s offered hand. They appeared in what looked like an empty field.

“Stay here and alert me if anyone approaches,” Hadrian told Dobby and walked forward. He could feel the buzz of the wards as he approached including Dobby’s magic from where the elf had slipped through the wards earlier. He easily parted a section of the wards and walked through. Once through the wards he was able to see the Gaunt house, though house was a generous term. It was more of an ancient shack, decayed and falling apart.

He entered the shack, stepping through the rotten wooden door. Sitting in the middle of the room was a box next to a removed floorboard. He knelt down next to the box and opened with a flick of his wrist without touching it. Sitting in the box was the ring he had had Dobby searching for since the beginning of summer. It was a simple gold ring with a black stone with the symbol of the Deathly Hallows lightly etched onto its surface.

Not only was the ring a horcrux, the stone was the resurrection stone, passed down through the Gaunt family for generations. Hadrian had been eager to find it. He cautiously reached a hand towards the ring probing it for the curse Dobby had spoke of. It was subtle, but once he started looking for it, it was easy to spot. It was a nasty curse, designed to kill anyone who put the ring on.

Hadrian kneeled down and opened his Sight, focusing all his attention on unraveling the curse and removing it from the ring. The curse almost seemed alive; every time he seemed to make progress the curse would fight back and restore itself. Hadrian tried going at the curse from multiple directions, attacking the magical strands around the ring at once rather than try and remove them one at a time. He could feel the curse slowly weakening and pressed his advantage.

By the time he was done removing the curse it was afternoon and he was stiff and drained. He picked up the ring feeling the enjoyable thrum of Tom Riddle’s soul.

“Dobby,” he called and Dobby appeared immediately. “I’m going to stay here for the night. Place some better wards around the place?”

“Of course sir,” said Dobby.

Hadrian pulled out his trunk and walked in. He collapsed onto one of the armchairs and sat examining the ring, turning it around in his hands. He looked up when Dobby appeared in front of him.

“Does sir want Dobby to continue collecting the ingredients?” he asked. Dobby had been collecting some of the ingredients Hadrian would need to start creating Tom Riddle’s body with the Philosopher’s Stone.

“No,” said Hadrian, “I have a new task for you. I want you to search for Sirius Black. He will most likely be in his animagus form, a black dog. Do not approach him or let him know you are there.”

“Of course sir,” said Dobby and disappeared.

Hadrian continued to examine the ring, feeling relaxed and content. After several minutes he forced himself to get up and walk to his study which contained more bookshelves, a desk, and a potions area. He unlocked his desk which was surrounded by wards. Inside was the mirror and the diadem. He placed the ring with them, but paused before he closed the drawer. He picked up the mirror and spent several minutes staring into it, but he saw no sign of Tom. With a sigh he returned the mirror and locked the desk. Tom hadn’t shown himself since the incident in the chamber and Hadrian missed talking to him. He had enjoyed writing to Tom in the diary.

He went to his bedroom and collapsed into bed planning on taking a long nap before he had to go out and collect plants that night which would take longer without Dobby.

As Hadrian drifted off to sleep, Death detached itself from the shadows in the study. It reached out a pale hand from its black robes and passed it over the desk drawer causing it to pop open. Death picked up the mirror and placed it on the desk. The figure leaned over the desk and gazed into the mirror, feeling the piece of soul practically recoiling to get away. Death chuckled in amusement, not that anyone could tell listening to the frightening laugh.

Tom Marvolo Riddle. How long had it taken for him to come up with the name Lord Voldemort Death wondered idly. Tom Marvolo Riddle who had sat in Wool’s Orphanage during the London Blitz and feared for his life. It was there after feeling the brush of Death so many times that he began to fear Death above all else. The creation of his horcruxes may not have worked the way he had planned, but now he was closer to immortality than he had ever been. Death knew that Hadrian would learn of the piece of Tom Riddle’s soul in him soon enough and then he would have to decide how to proceed. Death was leaving all decisions regarding the dark lord to Hadrian considering what had happened in Godric’s Hollow. If Hadrian chose to continue being a horcrux then Tom Riddle would be essentially immortal.

Death was hoping that Hadrian would choose this option. Death was beginning to realize that making Hadrian immortal was a mistake, not that Death regretted the decision, because the being definitely didn’t regret it. Death enjoyed Hadrian’s presence. It had been years since Death had been so close to a human. It was watching Hadrian with his friends that gave him pause, for one day they would all die and leave Hadrian alone.

In the past Death had had chosen ones gifted with long lives and the semblance of immortality. People had often worshipped them as gods, but things always seemed to go wrong. The Olympians had given Pandora a jar full of demons. Odin had given people incredible power with the creation of runes. Osiris had started the trend of reapers in Egypt that had the heads of canines, something that still disturbed Death.

But those people’s reigns had all come to an end. Death wanted Hadrian to have true immortality, to travel the cosmos at Death’s side as they reaped worlds and then universes. But Death worried for Hadrian. The best part of Hadrian in Death’s view was his humanity. That was what made Hadrian interesting. Death feared that watching his friends die and leave him would slowly cause Hadrian to lose that humanity. Death didn’t want Hadrian to become like the reapers, boring and uninteresting, and never changing.  

Tom Marvolo Riddle might just fix that though. Having someone else that was a constant through time besides Death would help him. And unlike Hadrian, Riddle would still be completely human.

Most people would assume that Death didn’t like people who escaped his grasp. But that wasn’t entirely true. Death had offered the Peverells gifts after they managed to avoid what should have been their deaths in the river. The gifts they asked for and what had happened after was their own doing.

Tom Riddle had immortality in his grasp if Hadrian decided that he wanted the man by his side. Everything was already in place for his immortality, Death wouldn’t have to do anything and Hadrian would just have to continue on the path he had chosen. And wouldn't it be amusing if the person who feared Death so much was forced to walk alongside Death and his reaper for all eternity? 

Death leaned over the mirror and stared into its depths having no reflection of its own.

“Don’t ruin this,” Death hissed at the mirror before putting it away.


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

Hadrian appeared in Diagon Alley between two buildings. He had been practicing travelling between different locations without the assistance of Death. It wasn’t quite the same as apparition that witches and wizards used, it was more similar to how reapers travelled. It was much smoother than apparition which he was very grateful for. The few times he had apparated with the Malfoys had not been enjoyable.  

He joined the crowd as he walked towards Gringotts where he had made an appointment with the goblin Griphook to go over the contents of his vaults. When he arrived at the bank he found Griphook already waiting to greet him despite the fact that he was early, and was lead to an office in the back. He sat in the chair in front of the desk and without being prompted he picked up the knife on the desk and sliced his palm, dripping his blood onto the parchment. As Griphook examined the parchment Hadrian silently healed the cut. Once Hadrian’s identity had been proven Griphook’s demeanor changed to be more friendly, or at least friendly for a goblin.

“How may Gringotts be of service to you Mr. Peverell?” he asked, his grin revealing his sharp teeth.

“I want a list of all my possessions and a count of the money in each of my vaults. I would also like to receive my signet rings and I want to see my parent’s will,” Hadrian told him.

Griphook got up and left the office and returned a few minutes later with several parchments of paper and a few boxes. He gave him the boxes with the signet rings first, the Potter, Black, and Peverell family signet rings. Once Hadrian had put on the rings Griphook gave him the list of his possessions and he barely managed to hide his surprise. He was _rich_ , which he knew, but he had even more than he had realized, though the Gryffindor vault mostly contained artefacts and books.

Griphook handed him his parents’ will and waited while he read it over. They had left everything to him, which he had already known. Though there were a few things he hadn’t been aware of in their will. Including an entire paragraph stating why Hadrian shouldn’t go to his mother’s sister, Petunia Dursley, if anything happened to them. So clearly Dumbledore had no problem going against his parents’ will when he tried to leave Hadrian with the Dursleys as a baby.

Hadrian was also surprised to see that Sirius Black was listed as his godfather, a fact Death had left out in his narrative. He was also surprised to see that Neville’s mother, Alice Longbottom, was his godmother. But most surprising was a note from his mother added towards the end asking Severus Snape to act as his godfather in the event where Sirius Black couldn’t.

“Could I have a copy of this?” asked Hadrian and Griphook immediately made him a magical copy of it.

Hadrian thanked Griphook and left the bank. Hadrian went to Knockturn Alley and entered Borgin and Burkes to examine the vanishing cabinet. There was only one cabinet, making it useless without its partner, but Hadrian suspected that the cabinet’s partner was in the Room of Hidden Things. He managed to bargain with the shopkeeper and got a good deal on the cabinet and levitated it into his trunk’s apartment. He wasn’t sure what shape the cabinet at school was in so he would have to check that out when he got there.

As Hadrian left the shop he noticed a familiar face stalking through the crowd, though no one else noticed the figure. It was Yong, though the reaper looked different, dressed in all black with a sleeveless kimono style top and no gloves. Yong’s arms were covered in strange swirling black tattoos and the reaper had short, slightly spiked hair.  

Hadrian turned and began walking after Yong as the reaper followed a man through the street. Yong suddenly turned, following the man into a narrow alley between two shops. Hadrian hurried to catch up and found Yong standing over the man’s body, holding its reapers blade.

“Who was he?” asked Hadrian stepping up next to Yong.

“A former spy for Voldemort,” said Yong, “he was trying to infiltrate the Ministry when Voldemort was still in power. Collect his magic.”

Hadrian reached out and felt the man’s magic as it left his body and pulled it into himself, Yong watching him the entire time.

“He was a metamorphmagus,” Yong told him, “a good ability for a spy.”

“Was he in anyway related to the Blacks?” asked Hadrian, knowing that the ability was often passed through the Black line.

“No,” said Yong, “he came from a less prominent family.”

“Hmm,” hummed Hadrian, staring down at the body. “I wish I was the Black heir through blood, then I might have been a metamorphmagus.”

Yong looked up at him as though he were an idiot.

“You are a reaper, you can change your appearance at will,” said Yong, “You can be or look like whatever you desire.”

“Really?” said Hadrian in surprise, but Yong ignored him.

Then Yong bolted out of the alley and disappeared into a large crowd walking by.

Hadrian was used to Yong’s behavior by now and wasn’t offended by the fast departure. He left Knockturn Alley and when no one was looking jumped onto one of the shops roofs. After placing wards around his trunks he entered his apartment and went to the bathroom. He stood in front of the mirror trying to change his appearance. To his surprise he discovered that Yong was right. Really, why didn’t Death just tell him this stuff? He found that he just had to focus on how he wanted to look to change his appearance. After a moment he grew his hair longer and vanished his scar. He also increased his height some. Now he definitely didn’t look like the Harry Potter the Wizarding World expected.

He went to his office and pulled the mirror from the desk drawer to see if Tom wanted to finally talk. He propped the mirror up and began working. He pulled out some stones and began transfiguring them into light blue crystals. He then started carving runes into them with his magic, tracing the symbols with his finger into the crystals.

“What are you doing?”

The corners of Hadrian’s mouth turned up at the sound of Tom’s voice.

“Finally decided to talk to me?” asked Hadrian, glancing up to see Tom watching him from the mirror. Tom didn’t answer. “Do you want to come out of the mirror?”

Tom frowned at him, “I can’t leave the mirror. I’m not strong enough.”

It sounded like he hated saying the words.

Hadrian pushed the magic he had taken from the dead man in the alley and pushed it into the mirror.

“Now you’re strong enough,” said Hadrian.

He went back to his crystals and a few minutes later Tom managed to exit the mirror and appeared standing next to Hadrian, looking the same as he had in the chamber.

“How did you do that?” he asked as he examined his hands.

“You need the energy from someone’s life force to sustain your form,” said Hadrian, “this will allow you to stay outside the mirror for a little while, but it’s only temporary. The little stunt with Ginny in the chamber wouldn’t have worked either. You would be able to make yourself solid move out of the diary, but without a body to contain your soul and lifeforce you would burn through the energy unless you continued to take the life force from others.”

Tom was silent for a long moment as he absorbed the information.

“What are you doing?” he repeated eventually, picking up one of the crystals.

“Preparing for the ritual that will give you a body,” said Hadrian, “I told you that I plan to reunite your soul and make you whole again.”

“You have three other horcruxes,” stated Tom and Hadrian nodded.

“How observant of you.”

There was a long silence as Hadrian worked. Tom leaned over his shoulder, watching him. Hadrian noticed that Tom wasn’t breathing, though he appeared solid. Hadrian wondered if he was solid enough to touch. Out of curiosity he reached up and touched Tom’s hand and found that he was solid for the moment though Hadrian knew it wouldn’t last. Hadrian took Tom’s hand in his own, examining it. He released Tom’s hand suddenly and turned back to the stones when he realized what he was doing. He thought he saw Tom smirk.  

Next to him Tom picked up his wand which was sitting on the desk next to him and examined it.

“You can’t use it,” said Hadrian, “I put a blood spell on it that prevents anyone but me from using it. Plus, even if you could use it, it would just use up your energy faster.”

Tom held the wand in his hands delicately, rotating it in his hands.

“Holly?” Tom smirked when Hadrian nodded, “A rarer type of wood. Impetuous are you? Quick to anger? Holly wands choose people who have dangerous and spiritual quests. What manner of quest have you taken up Hadrian Peverell? Restoring me?”

“You’re only part of it Tom,” said Hadrian with a smirk of his own, “sorry to tell you, but you’re not my entire life.”

“Oh of course,” said Tom, his smirk growing wider, “you’re on the way to becoming a dark lord, aren’t you?”

Hadrian didn’t bother to answer.

“Can you guess the core?” Hadrian asked him after a moment.

“Not unicorn hair,” said Tom, “you’re to proficient in the dark arts for it. I would say dragon heartstring.”

“Phoenix feather,” Hadrian told him.

“Really?” said Tom, “How, interesting. Very interesting.”

Hadrian looked up from the crystal he was carving to look at Tom who was staring at him, his eyes dark.

“Indeed,” said Hadrian, “but that’s not the only unique thing about the wand. The phoenix who gave that feather, gave one other feather. It went into a yew wand. Another rare wood.”

Tom raised an eyebrow at him.

“My wand,” he said it as a statement, but Hadrian nodded anyway. “Brother wands. We have a bond.”

Hadrian laughed quietly, “You have no idea Tom.”

He had yet to tell Tom his birth name.

Hadrian gathered up the marked crystals and put them in a small pouch enchanted to be bigger on the inside.

“I have someone coming over soon,” he told Tom, “I’m meeting her at the Leaky Cauldron and then bringing her here. I’m sure she’d like to meet you if you’re interested, or you can stay in the study.”

“She?” asked Tom, a slight edge to his voice which Hadian ignored.

“That’s what I said,” he replied, “I’ll be back in a little while with her.”

“I think I’ll just stay in the study,” Tom told him.

“Suit yourself,” said Hadrian taking his wand from Tom, their fingers brushing, then leaving the room, closing the study door behind him.

He left the apartment, leaving his trunk where it was. He floated down from the roof and walked through the crowd to the Leaky Cauldron. He didn’t have to wait long before he caught sight of Luna making her way through the crowd towards him. She was wearing beetle wing earrings and converses patterned with strawberries.

He smiled at her and offered her his arm which she took.

“Little moon,” he greeted her.

“Little Death,” she answered quiet enough so only he heard her.

They grabbed strawberry and peanut butter ice cream cones before heading to his trunk. Hadrian put his arm around her waist and pulled her to his side securely before jumping up and landing on the roof. Hadrian opened his trunk and offered his hand to Luna as she walked the couple of steps that led to his living room.

He watched as Luna walked around the room, examining it. She paused next to the door to the study, but didn’t try to go in and she didn’t say anything. Hadrian wouldn’t be surprised if she already knew who was on the other side of the door. In fact, he would be more surprised if she didn’t know.

“I like it,” she declared eventually with a nod, “I also like your hair.”

She brushed her fingers through his hair which now just touched his shoulders.

“I’m still getting used to it since this morning,” he told her, not elaborating in case anyone was listening in on their conversation. Luna nodded, not questioning it. She was either just going along with it or she already knew, or perhaps it was a bit of both.

“I’ve got the newspaper layout for _Metis_ with me,” said Luna pulling out the newspaper from her bag and spreading it out on the coffee table. She kneeled on the ground in front of it and Hadrian kneeled next to her to examine the paper.

 _Metis_ would be a branch of _The Quibbler_ though the connection between the papers wouldn’t be advertised. Metis, meaning wisdom or skill, was the Greek titan of deep thought, though her name also connoted magical cunning.

The first paper would consist of articles revealing the truth about Gilderoy Lockhart. Hadrian had tracked down the people and places talked about in Lockhart’s books and found out who was actually responsible for helping them after unlocking the memories Lockhart had erased, since obliviate couldn’t truly erase a memory permanently. It was just that very few knew how to reverse it and even fewer were capable of doing it.

Hadrian had even tracked down the vampire from Lockhart’s book _Voyages with Vampires_ who had had no idea about the book since he never bothered to read books on vampires, finding that they were often rather distasteful.

Besides the articles revealing the truth about Lockhart’s deeds the newspaper also had several articles that would be in the paper daily. There was a gardening article from Neville that would feature information on several plants, tips on growing them and their magical properties. This would be accompanied by an article by Draco listing how to make several potions with the plants.

Ginny was writing a Quidditch section about the different professional Quidditch teams.

Hermione was writing an article about important events in history that had occurred on that day in both the wizard and muggle world.

Luna was doing a surprisingly accurate horoscope.

Fred, George, Blaise, and Theo had helped Hadrian with the main articles.

Fred and George had also convinced him to let them add a joke of the day which he had agreed to mostly because he knew that the students at Hogwarts would enjoy it and he hoped to make them his main readers.

Besides working on the main articles Hadrian was writing an article that would focus on a different spell each day. He would use this as an opportunity to introduce spells that were considered to be darker in nature by the Ministry, but would not appear to be dark magic and were actually harmless.

He was also writing a political section and had secured advertising for the paper.

The paper would also feature an area for people to write in and voice their opinions.

“This looks great Luna,” he said.

They planned on releasing the newspapers on the first day of classes and he thought it looked perfect.

He chatted with Luna for a little longer before walking with her back to the Leaky Cauldron. When he returned to his apartment he found Tom relining in one of the chairs, watching him as he entered the room. He still looked solid, but Hadrian wasn’t sure how long it would last.

“I was expecting Ginny,” commented Tom, trying and failing to sound disinterested.

“Ginny is in Egypt with her family,” Hadrian said.

“Ah, I see,” said Tom a slight edge to his voice.

“Really?” said Hadrian raising an eyebrow, “And what exactly do you see Tom?”

“Nothing,” said Tom, “just that I’m sure you miss your girlfriend.”

“I do miss seeing Ginny, along with all my other friends,” said Hadrian, “she also isn’t my girlfriend, she’s just a friend who also happens to be a girl. And the same goes for Luna before you ask. I’m currently single, and I don’t have time to deal with a jealous soul fragment of a teenage dark lord.”

“I’m not jealous,” said Tom, “and don’t call me Tom.”

“That’s your name,” said Hadrian, “and I’m not calling you Voldemort. So Tom it is.”

He picked up the day’s _Daily Prophet_ , which once again featured Sirius Black. His thoughts turned to Sirius Black as he wondered about the animagus who was his godfather. Why had he chosen to escape now? He had been locked up for close to a decade. What had changed? And what about Peter Pettigrew?

“If you had faked your own death, and you were a rat animagus, where would you go?” Hadrian wondered aloud, earning him a strange look from Tom.

“Sirius Black,” said Hadrian holding up the _Daily Prophet_ , “is innocent. Peter Pettigrew betrayed the Potters and faked his own death.

“The only thing left of Pettigrew was a finger, so he must have cut it off before he escaped as a rat,” Hadrian said, thinking out loud. “He wouldn’t go to any of the former Death Eaters because many of them probably blame him for Voldemort’s defeat. After all, Voldemort went to the Potters on Pettigrew’s information. They would suspect him of being a traitor. And everyone else thinks he died heroically facing Black, so where did he go?”

“If he stayed in his rat form he would want to find someplace safe where he could keep an eye on the news,” pointed out Tom and Hadrian nodded.

“Yes, he would want to keep an eye on the news-” Hadrian broke off as it hit him. “No way, it can’t be.”

He ran to his study, Tom following him, and pulled out his letters from his friends searching through them until he found the letter from the Weasleys telling him about their trip to Egypt. Ginny had included a cutout of the picture of the family in the _Daily Prophet_. Hadrian scanned the picture and sure enough, in Ron Weasley’s hands was his rat. His rat that was missing a toe.

He checked the date that the picture had been in the paper and saw that it was the day before Black’s escape was in the paper. Had Black somehow seen the paper and realized that it was Pettigrew in his rat form?

Hadrian pulled out a piece of parchment and began writing a letter to Ginny, Fred, and George, asking about when they got their pet rat. As he wrote he explained his idea to Tom. Hadrian left his apartment and called for Hedwig who appeared immediately.

“Take this to the Weasleys in Egypt,” said Hadrian, “as fast as you can, and bring back their reply.”

Hedwig hooted and nipped his ear before taking off with the letter.

He went back into his apartment where Tom was waiting for him, though Hadrian thought he was starting to look less solid.

“Dobby,” Hadrian called and the elf appeared a moment later. Tom raised an eyebrow at the oddly dressed elf, but Hadrian sent him a look, daring him to comment on it. “How is the search going?”

“Dobby is still looking for the dog man Sirius Black,” said Dobby.

“I think he’ll be heading towards Hogwarts,” Hadrian told him, “Keep an eye on Hogsmeade.”

“Dobby will sir,” said the elf and disappeared.

Hadrian collapsed onto the couch with a groan. If his friends knew that Black was heading towards Hogwarts, and they would find out, then they would worry about him even more. Draco was already sending him letters everyday demanding to know that he was alright and still alive.

He sat up and glanced at Tom before summoning his wizards chess board and clearing the table to make room for it.

“Want to play Tom?” he asked, “I bet you can’t beat me.”

Tom leaned forward with a dark chuckle, “Oh, you’re going to regret saying that.”

In the end they didn’t get through the entire game before Tom lost his form, having burnt through the life energy Hadrian had given him. Hadrian sighed looking down at the game before putting it aside so they could continue the game another time. He wasn’t sure if or when he’d be able to see Tom outside the mirror again.

He summoned the Book of the Dead to him and began going through it. He needed to work on returning Tom Riddle’s soul to a body soon, but he would need time and he couldn’t do it at Hogwarts. He couldn’t chance Dumbledore finding out what he was doing.

And now he also needed to figure out what to do about Sirius Black. He wished that Death had told him about Black sooner. It would have been easier to prove his innocence without every auror looking for him. But the problem with having Death be the one telling him his information was that Death was big picture. An infinite being that overlooked everything. Death cared about few individuals and wouldn’t care about the fate of one man. Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew both survived their encounter, so Death didn’t care what happened to the men afterwards. Things like justice belonged in the hands of man.

But Hadrian was going to help the man that was supposed to be his godfather. He would just have to do it at the same time as he helped Tom Riddle.  


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

The rest of Hadrian’s summer was mostly taken up by another project of his that he had been thinking of starting for a while now, but what really sealed the deal for him was seeing Alice Longbottom listed as his godmother.

He knew that Alice and her husband Frank had been attacked by the Death Eaters Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Rabastan Lestrange, and Bartemius Crouch Jr. and were tortured with the Cruciatus Curse into insanity. The couple currently resided at St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries leaving Neville to be raised by his grandmother. Neville never spoke of his parents, but Hadrian knew about their condition from Death. Hadrian felt that he needed to try and do something to help them, for Neville’s sake at least.

After some research he put together two charm bags to slip under the Longbottoms pillows. He wasn’t sure if they would work and knew that this would most likely require some trial and error on his part with him having to bring different charm bags and seeing if there was any improvement.

When he was finally happy with his charm bags he left Diagon Alley and went into London. St Mungo's Hospital was located in what looked like a red-bricked, condemned department store called Purge and Dowse, Ltd. The hospital wasn’t located in Diagon Alley because there wasn’t enough room for it and putting it underground like the Ministry was deemed too unhealthy.

To get into the hospital one had to speak to one of the store dummies and request entrance. After speaking to the dummy Hadrian was able to gain access to the hospital. The hospital itself was white and looked like any other hospital in the wizard or muggle world. Healers ran around in bright lime green uniforms.

Hadrian made his way to the reception area towards the Welcome Witch who was sitting at a desk marked Inquiries.

“Excuse me,” said Hadrian, “I would like to visit Alice and Frank Longbottom in the permanent residence ward.”

Hadrian knew that this part of the hospital was locked to give the patients’ privacy and typically only family was allowed to visit except on holidays. He had debated about just sneaking into the hospital, but had decided against it. Though he was confident in his ability to get in, he didn’t want to risk disrupting the hospital in anyway.

In the end he had no problem getting in to see the Longbottoms. Once he showed the witch at the desk his parents’ will that listed Alice Longbottom as his godmother he was allowed in.

He headed up to the Janus Thickey Ward on the fourth floor and was let in by Miriam Strout, a motherly looking healer.

He headed to the end of the room where the Longbottoms’ beds were located. Alice Longbottom looked up at his approach from where she sat on the edge of her bed in a nightgown. She looked very different from the one photo Hadrian had of her in his album. Gone was the plump, happy looking face that had reminded Hadrian of Neville. Her face was thin and worn now, her eyes seemed overly large, and her hair had turned white and was wispy and dead-looking. Hadrian wasn’t sure if it was from just time or from the torture she had endured under the Cruciatus Curse.

She didn’t speak as Hadrian approached and he wondered if she even could. He smiled at her as he stood next to her bed.

“Hello, Mrs. Longbottom, my name is Harry Potter,” he greeted her, deciding to use his birth name, not that he expected her to know the name, but he didn’t want to confuse her more. “I’m a friend of your son’s, Neville. You also knew my parents, Lily and James Potter. They made you my godmother.”

Mrs. Longbottom just continued to stare at him with wide, blank eyes.

“I have a gift for you,” said Hadrian pulling out the charm bags from his pocket. “May I put it under your pillow?”

When Mrs. Longbottom made no response he approached and slipped the charm bag under her pillow. He then made his way to the next bed over that belonged to Frank Longbottom. Mr. Longbottom was sitting in a chair at the window, his back to Hadrian. Hadrian greeted him, but he got no response so he just slipped the charm bag under his pillow.

Hadrian felt bad just leaving them, but he knew there wasn’t much point in visiting. How could he convince two people who were unable to recognize their own son who he was?

As he was leaving the ward he caught sight of a man in a light blue nightgown with wavy blond hair, bright blue eyes, and a broad vacant smile that revealed dazzlingly white teeth. Gilderoy Lockhart, so this is where he had ended up. Hadrian honestly hadn’t given much thought to Lockhart after he wiped his memories. The man appeared to be signing photos of himself, so apparently some things never changed. Hadrian hurried past the man, not wanting to have any sort of interaction with him.

He left St Mungo’s and returned to Diagon Alley. He decided to buy his school supplies since he only had a few days of summer left. When he returned to his apartment he chatted to Tom in the mirror, trying to forget the vacant look in the Longbottoms’ eyes.       

When September first arrived Hadrian got to platform nine and three quarters with plenty of time to spare, his trunk shrunk in his pocket. Hedwig was already on her way to Hogwarts. If he really wanted to Hadrian could just appear in Hogwarts since he could get past the wards with no problems, but that would lead to questions about how he got there, plus he wanted to talk with his friends.

He waited to board the train until all his friends arrived. By the time the Weasley family came running onto the platform most of the train compartments were full and they spent quite a while trying to find an empty compartment. In the end they had to cram into a compartment with a sleeping man that Hadrian assumed was the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Hadrian was disappointed since he had wanted to discuss things with his friends that he’d rather not say in front of a random stranger.

“Who is he?” asked Draco sitting across from the sleeping man as Hadrian sat next to him.

“Must be the new Defense teacher,” said Theo.

“Remus Lupin,” said Hermione as she stowed her trunk.

“How do you know that?” asked Draco in disbelief.

“His trunk has his name on it,” said Hermione sitting down next to Draco.

Hadrian blinked in surprise at the name and turned to examine the man next to him. He was wearing shabby and patched robes and looked ill and exhausted. He was pale and looked prematurely aged which Hadrian knew was common with werewolves. He had light brown hair that was already graying. There were scars cutting across his face that Hadrian assumed were self-inflicted from when he was in his werewolf form, and so would never fully heal.

They chatted about their summer and kept on light topics. Hadrian knew that he would have to meet with his friends in the Room of Requirement to discuss things without the chance of being overheard.

He debated about telling Neville about his visit with his parents and what he was trying to do, but decided against it for the moment. He wasn’t sure he would actually be able to help them and he didn’t want to give Neville hope just to have it fail.

“How was Egypt?” Hadrian asked the Weasleys. The twins were sitting on the floor and Ginny was sitting near the door next to Luna.

“Brilliant!” chorused the twins.

“Those Egyptians really knew their curses,” said Fred.

“Gave us a few ideas,” said George.

They both had identical grins that promised trouble and everyone chuckled.

“They tried to put me in a sarcophagus, but mum stopped them,” said Ginny, “You should have heard her yelling, but I didn’t care. I wanted to go in.”

Hadrian laughed along with the others.

“Sounds like you guys had a good time,” said Cedric from where he also sat on the floor with the twins. “I spent most of my summer with my dad. He insisted on dragging me into the Ministry with him.”

“He works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, right?” asked Hadrian and Cedric nodded.

“By the way, Hadrian,” asked George, “Why did you want to know about Scabbers?”

“Scabbers?” asked Draco in confusion, “What the heck is a scabbers?”

The twins explained to the others that Scabbers was their brother Ron’s rat.

“Why were you asking about their rat?” Neville asked Hadrian when they were done talking.

“I have a theory,” said Hadrian, glancing at Lupin, who was still sleeping, “but I’ll wait to tell you until we get to school.”

The others nodded as they looked at Lupin with understanding.

“It involves Black,” Hadrian continued and he saw their eyes widen.

“You need to be careful,” said Draco, his voice tinged with worry. “You do know about Black, don’t you?”

“I do,” said Hadrian, “but I don’t think I’m in any danger, and I’ll explain why later. How was everyone else's summer?”

“Pretty good,” said Theo, then looked over at Blaise. “Is it true that your mother might be getting married again?”

Blaise groaned and the others chuckled.

“How many would that be?” asked Draco, “Six?”

“Seven,” corrected Blaise.

“Your mother’s been married six times?!” exclaimed Hermione.

“That’s insane!” said Neville.

Blaise just shrugged, “It could be worse I guess. I actually don’t mind this one and my mother met him in Italy so I got to spend the summer there. He’s still in that stage where he’s trying really hard to impress her, so he did and gave me everything I asked for.”

“Are we going to celebrate?” asked Luna suddenly, looking up at Draco from a book she had been writing in.

“How did you- oh never mind,” said Draco getting up and pulling a box out of his trunk. “Since we weren't able to get together to celebrate your birthday Hadrian or your birthday Neville, I brought a cake. I thought we could eat it now.”

He opened the box to reveal a cake with chocolate frosting and blue writing.

“Thank you Draco!” said Hadrian with a genuine smile and Neville thanked him as well. “And thank you all again for my presents,” he said addressing the others as well. They had all sent him presents with owls on his birthday.

They all sang happy birthday to him and Neville, being careful to not be too loud, and then Draco cut the cake with Hermione’s help and they passed it out.

“Should we wake him?” asked Neville, indicating Lupin.

“I think we should let him sleep,” said Hermione, “He looks tired.”

“He looks more than tired,” said Theo, “He looks sick.”

“You should put a piece aside for him,” said Cedric, “that way if he wakes up before we get to school he can have some.”

Draco cut and put a piece of cake on a plate aside. The witch with the trolley knocked on their door and Hadrian bought them all bottles of pumpkin juice to go with their cake. Draco also bought some chocolate frogs to share.

“Speaking of birthdays,” said Hadrian, “I got you a present Hermione, and I know it's early, but it would be best if I gave it to you now. But let's wait until we’re all done eating.”

They chatted as they ate and when they were done, Hadrian pulled out his trunk and the twins helped hold it in the crowded compartment as he opened it.

“Luna helped pick it out,” Hadrian told Hermione. “So I think you’ll like it.”

He grinned when he saw Hermione’s present sitting on the bottom of his apartment steps and reached in to pull it out. Hermione gasped when he pulled out the large ginger cat.

“I know you’ve talked about possibly getting a cat before, and this one is part kneazle, so he’s very intelligent,” Hadrian told her as he shrunk his trunk down and put it away. “His name is Crookshanks.”

He handed the cat to Hermione who had an enormous grin on her face.

“He’s beautiful!” she exclaimed, “Thank you Hadrian! I love him!”  

“Way to go Hadrian,” said Draco, “we haven’t even given her our presents yet and you had to go and make the rest of us look bad.”

“It’s not my fault if you can’t compete with my sheer awesomeness,” said Hadrian teasingly as Hermione leaned over and gave him a hug.

Just as Hermione was sitting back down the train began to slow.

Cedric frowned and stood up and so did the twins.

“It’s too early,” said Cedric, “we shouldn’t be stopping yet.”

“What’s going on?” asked Neville in confusion.

Hadrian frowned as he felt the compartment grow slightly colder. The train continued to slow until it came to a complete stop, the lights flickering for a moment before they went out. The compartment was definitely getting colder now and Hadrian thought he could see his breath shimmer faintly in the air.

“There’s something moving outside!” cried Draco in alarm from where he sat next to the window.

Hermione hugged Crookshanks closer to her chest and the cat’s large bottlebrush tail grew even larger.

Hadrian pulled out his wand and conjured _lumos_ and the others quickly did the same. Hadrian extended his magic, feeling the area around them and his mind seemed to come to a halt at what he found. His magic touched something that he could only describe as cold. The beings exuding this power were definitely not alive. In some ways it reminded him of the reapers; Death even, but this felt wrong.

 _“Is that what I think?”_ Hadrian asked Death.

 _“Yes,”_ answered Death.

“They’re dementors,” he told the group and he could see them visibly tense, their eyes growing wide with fear. But he also noticed that they were all leaning towards him, as though to protect him. This behavior surprised Hadrian for a moment before he realized just what was happening. He had already noticed the way his friends’ behavior had changed towards him, they were viewing him as a leader, someone worthy of their respect. They were becoming his followers, and as such they viewed it as their jobs to protect him.

This wouldn’t do, thought Hadrian. He didn’t need them protecting him, if anything it should be the other way around. He was immortal, but of course they didn’t know that, except for Luna. He would have to fix that soon he thought. He wouldn’t risk his friends lives protecting him when he didn’t need it.  

Hadrian could feel the dementors’ power pushing against his magic, but he found himself unaffected by it. It wasn’t exactly a comfortable feeling, but otherwise he was fine. Even the cold didn’t seem to bother him. Looking around though he could see that the others were definitely affected by the dementors presence. They were pale and shivering slightly from the cold. Luna looked the worst, her head down, chin against her chest.

Hadrian pushed his magic out into the cart and he heard the others gasp in surprise as his magic wrapped around them and protected them from the dementor’s influence, warming the compartment.

He stood up and crossed to the door, the others too shocked to try and stop him. He flung open the compartment door and looked out, lighting the hall with his wand. He could make out the shape of a hooded dementor making its way down the hall towards him. It was gliding and had a humanoid shape though it was close to three meters in height. It’s black cloak was tattered and it fluttered around its figure. Its breath made a rattling noise, as though it were trying to suck more than air out of the room, which it was.

“Sirius Black is not here!” he yelled, magic amplifying his voice and giving it power. “Leave!”

The dementor froze in place before turning and fleeing from the train. Hadrian could feel the other dementors around the train doing the same. Hadrian turned back to the compartment to find everyone staring at him in shock, including Remus Lupin.

“Is everyone alright?” he asked.

A moment later the lights came back on and the train began to move again. His magic continued to warm the cart, driving the last remains of the dementors’ power away.

When Hadrian got no response he looked over his friends. They were all still slightly pale, but they looked like they were recovering. Luna still appeared to be the most affected and Neville had moved over to where Hadrian had been sitting to put an arm around her shoulders to comfort her.

Once he saw that his friends were all mostly fine, he then noticed the way they were looking at him; with a mixture of shock and admiration. He wondered briefly if this was how the Death Eaters had looked at Voldemort.

He then turned his attention to Lupin, who had moved to the front of the compartment, wand drawn. Though he too was staring at Hadrian in shock.

“What did you do?” he asked, his voice low.

Hadrian just shrugged before turning to Draco.

“Are there any chocolate frogs left?” he asked and Draco handed him the box. Hadrian passed the chocolate out, giving extra to Luna. Lupin also pulled out a handful of chocolate bars and went to check on the other students.  

There was silence after he left as his friends ate the chocolate.

“How did you do it?” asked Blaise after a little while.

“I just told them the truth,” said Hadrian with a shrug, “Sirius Black is not on this train.”

“But you can only ward off dementors with a patronus charm,” said Hermione.

“Whatever you did,” said George, “it was wicked.”

“I’ve never heard of a dementor doing that,” said Cedric.

“Well I for one can’t believe that there were dementors here in the first place,” said Hadrian, who was beginning to feel angry. “Whose brilliant idea was it to allow those things anywhere near children?”

“They think Black is coming after you,” said Theo, “that he’s going to try and kill you.”

“That won’t happen,” Hadrian assured them, “but it seems that I have a lot to tell you when we get to school. Until then, we should rest.”

He looked over at Luna who had lifted her head to meet his gaze.

“You alright little moon?”

She nodded and Hadrian took a seat on the bench where Lupin had been. His friends began stretching out as they tried to rest and before Hadrian knew it, he was surrounded by his friends. Neville’s head was resting on his shoulder, with Luna laying across both their laps, her head on Hadrian. Ginny had managed to squirm her way between the window and Hadrian and had her head resting on his other shoulder. Fred and George were at his feet, leaning back against his legs and the others had all piled up around him.

How had he managed to become a human teddy bear? He had reaper powers, shouldn’t that repel people? So much for getting a book and reading he thought as he tried to get comfortable without disturbing anyone as they drifted off to sleep. He thought he could hear Death laughing at him.

He wasn’t sure how much time passed before Hadrian heard the compartment door open and Lupin stepped it. Lupin paused when he saw them all piled up around Hadrian and raised an eyebrow at him, looking amused.

“Sorry Professor Lupin,” said Hadrian in a whisper, “there’s not much room.”

Lupin just smiled softly as he continued to observe the group.

“Did I hear something about cake earlier, or was I just dreaming?” he asked.

Hadrian grinned and pointed to the piece of cake that they had put aside. Lupin made his way carefully towards it and picked it up and began eating.

“Happy birthday by the way,” he said and Hadrian thanked him.

There was a moment of silence and Hadrian suddenly wondered if Lupin knew who he was. Probably not he realized, since after all, he no longer looked like Harry Potter.

“My name is Hadrian Peverell,” he told him, “though when I was a baby you knew me as Harry Potter.”

“I know,” said Lupin and Hadrian was surprised. Then it hit him, Lupin was a werewolf. He probably knew Hadrian by scent alone.

“How do you know that I knew you as a baby?” asked Lupin.

“I have an album of my parents,” Hadrian told him, “you’re in it.”

This wasn’t actually a lie, there were pictures of Lupin with his parents in his album, though none of them showed Lupin with him as a baby.

Lupin nodded, seeming to accept his answer.

“Will there be dementors at the school?” asked Hadrian, already dreading the answer. He might not be affected by dementors, but he didn’t like how his friends reacted to them.

“Unfortunately, yes,” said Lupin with a weary sigh. “There will be dementors guarding the school.”

Right, guarding. Hadrian could have snorted. The rest of the train ride passed in silence until they began to slow down again, this time for real, as they approached Hogwarts. Hadrian woke up his friends and they all gathered their stuff and exited the train onto the platform and headed towards the thestral pulled carriages.

Hadrian watched as Luna paused to reach out and pet one of the thestrals pulling their cart before she got in. It was a tough fit in the carriage, but everyone seemed determine to make it work. Then the carriage was off as they headed up to the school.

If Hadrian reached out with his magic, he could just feel the dementors hovering around the school grounds, but they didn’t seem to actually be on the grounds which was something at least.  

Hadrian sighed, he needed to talk to his friends, at least about Sirius Black. He wasn’t sure that it was time to tell them about Death and his immortality, but hopefully they wouldn’t try and do something like risk their lives for him if they knew that Black wasn’t out to harm him.

The carriage came to a stop and they all clambered out as they entered Hogwarts for another year.


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five

When they entered the Great Hall they all sat at their separate house tables for the sorting. After the sorting Dumbledore told everyone that the dementors would be guarding the school and warned that dementors could not be tricked, not by disguises or by invisibility cloaks.

 _“Is that true about my cloak?”_ he asked Death.

 _“Yes,”_ said Death, _“Dementors sense life forces, but with some practice you will be able to hide your life force from them.”_

Hadrian hadn’t been sitting at the Ravenclaw table for long after the sorting before Professor McGonagall approached him and Hermione and asked them to follow her. Hermione and Hadrian glanced at each other in confusion as McGonagall led them to her office.

“Relax you two,” said McGonagall sitting down behind her desk and conjuring up chairs for Hadrian and Hermione. “You’re not in any trouble, but I need to go over your schedules with you.”

She pulled out two sheets of paper and Hadrian took the one handed to him. He saw it was his class schedule, and a quick glance showed him that it was impossible. He had too many classes with some of them at the same time. When he had selected his classes at the end of last year he had foolishly not thought about what that would mean for his schedule. He had assumed that the school would simply put him in whatever classes fit in his schedule. He glanced over and saw that Hermione’s schedule looked the same as his and he remembered that they had been both selected the same classes.

Professor McGonagall then gave them both time turners and explained how they worked. Each turn would allow them to go back one hour. McGonagall tried to convince both of them to not take Divination, but both were determined to take it. Hadrian had already been warned by Death about Trelawney, but he figured that the class would at least be amusing and he was curious what Luna would think about it and wished that she could take it with him.

Hadrian and Hermione took their time turners thanking McGonagall. They returned to the Great Hall and finished eating. When he was done, Hadrian stood and saw his all friends do the same and follow him out of the Great Hall. Without a word they all headed to the Room of Requirement to talk in private.

The room took the form of a comfortable living area with large overstuffed chairs lined up in a circle in front of a fireplace. They took their seats without discussion, Hadrian sitting in front of the fireplace, a slight gap between the chairs on either side of him. Luna sat in the chair to his right.

He examined his friends as they settled in around him, paying extra attention to Luna as he checked to make sure that they were continuing to recover from the close encounter with the dementors. They appeared alright, but he still had Dobby bring them all hot chocolate. They sat and sipped it for a little while in silence. Hadrian could feel their eyes on him as they waited for him to speak.

“Do any of you know why Voldemort targeted me?” he began eventually and he could see the surprise on his friends’ faces at the question.

“No,” said Blaise after a moment, “but it was known that your parents fought in the Order against Voldemort.”

“That is true,” said Hadrian with a nod, “but the reason Voldemort was in Godric’s Hollow that night was because of a prophecy by one Sybill Trelawney, Hogwarts very own Divination teacher and a rather pathetic excuse of a seer. She made a prophecy that led to Voldemort believing that I would be the one capable of defeating him. Me and one other child both filled the role for the prophecy. The other child was you Neville.”

“Me?” said Neville in surprise.

“Yes,” said Hadrian, “the prophecy stated that the child would be male and born at the end of July to parents who had defied Voldemort three times and had lived to tell the tale. Both of us fit that description. If more than one child fit the prophecy’s requirements then it would be Voldemort who would decide which child, which he did by coming after me.”

“Why do you think he chose you?” asked Draco.

“I believe it was because I am a half-blood like him.”

There was a moment of silence that was broken by Ginny.

“Voldemort was a half-blood?”

“Is,” corrected Hadrian, “he is a half-blood. He’s still alive, though barely. His real name is Tom Riddle, but to continue what I was saying, I was targeted that night because of a prophecy. Dumbledore heard the prophecy and so protections were made to protect me along with my parents. Have you guys heard of the Fidelius Charm?”

“I remember reading about it,” said Hermione, “It’s a very powerful and complicated spell used to hide a secret.”

“That’s correct,” said Hadrian with a nod, “the Fidelius Charm is an ancient spell and prevents anyone from gaining a piece of knowledge. If the knowledge, or secret, is a location then that location is invisible, intangible, unplottable and soundproof to everyone, save one person, the Secret Keeper. The Secret Keeper holds the secret in their soul, and only they can reveal the truth. The Fidelius Charm was used to protect my parents and I.”

“But your family was betrayed,” said Cedric, “that’s how Voldemort found you.”

“Yes,” said Hadrian with a nod, “would anyone like to take a guess at who my parents’ secret keeper was?”

“Sirius Black,” said the twins at the same time.

“You are both correct and incorrect,” he told the twins, causing his friends to frown. “I’ve been doing some research over the summer into what really happened. Sirius Black started out as my parents’ Secret Keeper, but then they switched the role of Secret Keeper to Peter Pettigrew.”

“The man Black killed?” said Theo in surprise.

“They were all friends at the time,” Hadrian told them, “but Peter was a spy. He told Voldemort were I was and when Black realized what had happened, he went after Pettigrew.”

“And he got his revenge on Pettigrew by blowing him up!” exclaimed Draco, “But everyone thinks it was the opposite, that Pettigrew went after Black!”

“Actually, Pettigrew is still alive,” said Hadrian.

He explained how Pettigrew, Black, and his father had become animagi, leaving out the reason why, and how Pettigrew had escaped after turning into his rat form.

“Oh Merlin,” hissed Ginny when he was done explaining, eyes wide with understanding.

“That’s why you wanted to know about Scabbers!” said Fred.

“You think he’s Peter Pettigrew!” finished George.

“I believe so,” said Hadrian, “and I think Sirius Black is coming to Hogwarts to finish what he started.”

Fred and George leapt to their feet, “We can get Scabbers for you!” they said simultaneously.

“Get him and bring him to me tomorrow,” said Hadrian, “right now I think everyone should get some sleep. Tomorrow is the first day of classes, and remember, the first copies of _Metis_ will be released tomorrow.”

Everyone nodded as they got up and they all left the Room of Requirement after Fred and George checked their map, the Marauder's Map, to make sure no one was nearby. They split up to head to their dorms. Hadrian grabbed the horcruxes once he got to his dorm and went down to the Chamber of Secrets. He opened Slytherin’s study and locked the horcruxes up. That way there was no chance of someone else finding them.

He spent the rest of the night in the chamber looking through the books, which were mostly on dark magic and spells Hadrian had never heard of, most likely because they were banned by the Ministry.

When morning came he walked to the Ravenclaw dorm and got ready for the day then walked down to breakfast with Luna and Hermione. The others all joined them at the Ravenclaw table and they chatted about the classes they had that day until the owls came. There were always a lot of owls, but today there were even more than usual as they dropped copies of _Metis_ onto all the tables, including the staff table. Hadrian caught sight of Hedwig, who dropped a copy of the paper along with the _Daily Prophet_ for him.  

Hadrian and his friends picked up copies of the paper and pretended to look through them with their classmates. Hadrian glanced around the Great Hall as people picked up the papers curiously and began to read. He could hear their conversations and the shock in their voices as they read the truth about Lockhart’s deeds.

Hadrian grinned slightly and met his friends eyes. They were officially in business. They already had the next several paper outlines ready to go with several articles already done. It helped that some of the articles could be written beforehand, such as Draco and Neville’s articles on herbology and potions. Both boys had already planned before the summer a list of plants and potions they would write about and had written the articles for them over the summer. Hermione had already finished all her history articles and Luna was able to make her horoscopes up to a month in advance, just making small changes before it was published. This allowed for more people to help write the main articles as newsworthy events occurred.

The night before Hadrian had written an article to be published in the next paper about the dementors at Hogwarts and the incident on the train along with an article discussing what dementors were. He only briefly mentioned Black, knowing that they couldn’t entirely ignore what was currently the biggest news in wizarding Britain. But knowing what he knew about Black, Hadrian didn’t want to just continuously run articles about what supposedly happened years ago and he knew that if he reported the truth right now without proof, the paper would never be taken seriously. Though he had talked about Black in the political section with an article about how no record of Black’s trial could be found, and questioned whether he had ever received one, which he hadn’t.

When breakfast was finished Hadrian and Hermione walked down to the dungeons for potions. Hadrian wanted to talk to Snape, but knew he should wait and visit on Snape’s free period that afternoon.

After Potions Hadrian and Hermione found an empty corridor so they could use their time turners to go back an hour and then headed to Divination where they joined up with Neville. The entire class turned out to be a joke. Trelawney was convinced that Hadrian was going to die, claiming to see the Grim in his teacup when they read tea leaves. Hadrian had to struggle to not laugh, not able to take Trelawney seriously since he was after all, immortal, and so wouldn’t die. Though he did have to wonder if Trelawney was just completely making it up or if she could sense Death near him and so assumed that meant he would die.

Hermione was clearly frustrated with the professor and the class and Hadrian had a feeling she might change her mind and listen to McGonagall and drop the class after all. Hadrian decided that he would stay for at least a little longer for some laughs.

Hadrian’s last class of the day was Defense Against the Dark Arts. He was looking forward to the class and he also wanted to speak with Lupin. When they arrived in the classroom Lupin wasn’t there. They all took their seats and pulled out their books to wait. A moment later Lupin came in, looking just as tired as he had on the train.

“You won’t be needing your books,” said Lupin, “today will be a practical lesson.”

There was murmur of excited whispers as Lupin led them out of the classroom. They had never had a practical defense lesson before. Though Lockhart had set pixies loose on the Gryffindors.

Lupin brought them to the teachers lounge holding the door open as they all filed in. The only professor there was Snape who looked up at their arrival and then left the room a moment later, barely bothering to glance at Lupin who watched him go.

“Alright everyone gather around,” Lupin walked over to a wardrobe and tapped it with his wand causing it to shake. Everyone stepped back in alarm and there were a few gasps. Hadrian narrowed his eyes at the wardrobe, he had a good guess what was in it.

“There’s no need to be alarmed,” said Lupin reassuringly with a smile, “it’s just a boggart.”   

Hadrian smirked slightly as most of the class stepped back, clearly finding this information a reason to be alarmed. Hadrian noted that like him, Hermione remained calm and was proud, he needed followers who didn't flee at the idea of something like a boggart.

Lupin asked the class several questions about boggarts which Hadrian and Hermione easily answered. He then taught them the spell they would be using on the boggart. They were then told to line up to face the boggart.

Hadrian ended up with Hermione near the back of the line. He wasn't that worried about facing the boggart, he knew he could handle it easily, but he would rather not do it in front of his classmates. He didn't want them to know his worst fear, especially since he honestly wasn't sure what shape the boggart would take, but he knew that it wouldn't manifest as some simple fear like snakes or spiders like his classmates’ boggarts.

In the end it turned out he didn't have to worry about it, because when Hadrian got to the front of the line Lupin stepped in front of him. Immediately the boggart took the form of what Hadrian recognized as the full moon, though he could see confused looks on his classmates’ faces as they tried to figure out what the glowing orb was.

 _“Riddikulus!”_ cried Lupin and the moon turned into a deflated balloon and Lupin quickly herded the boggart back into the wardrobe and locked it.

“That’s all for today,” Lupin told the class, “please write up a paper on boggarts and hand it in next class.”

Hadrian stayed behind as the rest of the class left.

“Professor,” he asked, walking next to Lupin, “may I ask, why did you stop me from facing the boggart?”

“I thought that it was obvious,” said Lupin, “I didn’t want Voldemort appearing.”

“Oh,” said Hadrian with a small chuckle, “I guess that is pretty obvious, though I didn’t even consider Voldemort being my boggart.”

“Well, then I apologize for assuming,” replied Lupin.

“It’s fine,” Hadrian told him, “I honestly don’t know what it would have been.”

“No?” said Lupin raising an eyebrow. “You don’t know what your worst fear is?”

“I really don’t know,” said Hadrian with a small shrug. “I’m not afraid of heights or spiders, I rather like snakes, I don’t fear dying.”

“Really?” asked Lupin at the last one.

Hadrian paused before answering.

“Dying is just a part of life,” he replied after a moment. Except for me, he thought. “It was nice talking to you professor, but I better get going.”

He left Lupin and walked down to the potions classroom. He knocked before entering and found Snape working on a potion. His eyes swept over the ingredients as he approached the professor, Snape’s eyes on him.

“What are you doing here Peverell?”

“I wanted to show you something professur,” replied Hadrian, “but I can see that you’re busy. I assume that you’re making the Wolfsbane Potion for Professor Lupin?”

Snape paused, his head jerking up to look at Hadrian who stared back innocently.

“How do you know about Lupin?” demanded Snape, his lip curling slightly.

“I know a lot of things I shouldn’t professor,” replied Hadrian with a shrug. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a copy of his parents’ will and placed in on Snape’s desk. “I would appreciate it if you were to look this over when you got a chance. I think you’ll find it rather interesting.”

With that Hadrian turned and left, heading to the Room of Requirement.  


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

Hadrian entered the Room of Requirement and found his friends waiting for him. Ginny was levitating a rat in the air. The rat was struggling and making terrified high pitched squeals as it rotated slowly.

“Ah, this must me Scabbers,” said Hadrian examining the rat and noticing the missing toe. Hadrian pulled out his wand and pointed it at the rat.

“When I tell you, release him,” he told Ginny, who nodded. The others all had their wands out at the ready as they stood in a loose circle around the rat. “Now,” said Hadrian calmly and Ginny released the rat with a flick of her wand and he fell to the floor, but before he had even landed, Hadrian wordlessly sent a powerful revealing spell at the rat and they all watched as Peter Pettigrew appeared. It was like watching a slow motion video, the rat grew, its features changing until a small balding man with rather rat like features appeared. 

Pettigrew hit the ground on his stomach and sat up, his eyes wide with fear, scanning the room for a way to escape, but found a circle of wands pointing at him. 

“Hello, Pettigrew,” said Hadrian calmly, “do you know who I am? I’m the boy whose family you betrayed. Harry Potter, though I prefer Hadrian Peverell.”

“Betray?” said Pettigrew, his voice coming out like a squeak, trembling slightly. “I would never betray James and Lily! It was Sirius, Sirius Black, he betrayed your family!”

“And you’ve just been hiding in the form of a rat pretending you were dead for a decade because you were innocent I take it?” said Hadrian raising an eyebrow, unamused. 

Pettigrew opened and closed his mouth a few times, his eyes scanning around the group before he suddenly made a break for it. He dove between Luna and Ginny, perhaps thinking they were the weakest of the group because they were the youngest. But he didn’t get far. Luna hit him with a stunner and Ginny sent ropes shooting from the tip of her wand that tied Pettigrew up securely. 

“Thank you ladies,” said Hadrian with a grin, “I’ll take it from here.”

With a flick of his wand Pettigrew was picked up off the ground, levitating him in the center of the room. 

“Let’s begin today’s lesson,” said Hadrian to the group, “practicing on a live target. I want everyone to take turns hitting Pettigrew with spells and then I want someone else to try and undo the spell’s effects.”

Pettigrew’s eyes were huge and he struggled against the ropes which Hadrian vanished, but kept him floating in the air, helpless. 

“Please,” begged Pettigrew, his eyes watering, “don’t hurt me!”

“It’s about twelve years too late for that,” said Hadrian, a cold edge entering his voice, before he addressed his friends again. “Remember, don’t kill him. I need him alive.”

Hadrian watched as his friends sent curse after curse at Pettigrew who screamed in pain and terror. Hadrian was glad that he had checked beforehand that the room was soundproofed. He helped instruct his friends, giving them tips and pointers on the spells they used or sometimes suggesting new ones.  

After standing back and simply watching for a little while, Hadrian stepped forward and began testing a few new spells of his own. He wouldn’t describe himself as someone who enjoyed torture, but he would admit that he did have a sadistic streak though he mostly kept it hidden. And this, he was enjoying. This man, Peter Pettigrew, deserved it. He had betrayed his parents, who had trusted him enough to place the secret of their location in his soul on Pettigrew’s suggestion. Hadrian was becoming quite familiar with soul magic and he knew what level of trust was required for such a spell to even work. This was revenge for his parents. 

Looking around Hadrian could see that his friends were also enjoying it, and he grinned. He had been a little worried about doing this, showing them his sadistic darker side, but clearly the gamble was paying of. He needed followers who were not afraid of inflicting pain and who were willing to do as he asked without hesitation, and they were all proving themselves admirably. 

Eventually Hadrian called for them to stop and they did so immediately. He sent them to their dorms and they filed out of the room as he healed Pettigrew and forced him back into his rat form before conjuring a cage for him. He caught Luna’s eye as she left and they exchanged a grin. He truly was becoming a dark lord, and he had his inner circle.  

“Dobby,” he called and the elf appeared with a small pop. “I want you to take this rat and give it just enough food and water to survive. The food can be bland, just scraps from the kitchen. It’s Peter Pettigrew in his rat animagus form.”

“Of course sir,” said Dobby taking the cage from him. “Dobby will keep the rat man alive.”

“Have you spotted Sirius Black again?” asked Hadrian.

Dobby had caught sight of Sirius Black a few days earlier, he was making his way slowly to Hogsmeade, but he wouldn’t arrive in the town for a while. 

“Dobby is keeping an eye on the dog man,” said the elf with a nod.

“Good, tell me when he gets close,” said Hadrian and Dobby nodded before disappearing with another pop.

Hadrian had debated with himself over how to handle Sirius Black. The man was evasive and was clearly doing a good job at hiding even if Hadrian did know where he was headed. So he had decided to let Black arrive in Hogsmeade before putting his plan into motion.  

Hadrian left the room and headed to the chamber, pulling on his cloak and flying down the tunnel, closing it being him. He then opened Slytherin’s study and pulled out the mirror.

“Tom,” he called softly and Tom’s face appeared in the mirror and Hadrian couldn’t help but grin. “It’s pretty much official, I have my inner circle.” 

Hadrian chatted with Tom as he worked on articles for the newspaper and translated the Book of the Dead, though he was careful to keep the book out of Tom’s sight. He didn’t want him to start asking questions about it. 

They chatted late into the night before Hadrian left to get ready for class. He had no problem using the time turner to get to all his classes and even used it to allow him to visit Hagrid for tea. 

After his second to last class he used the time turner to go back an hour and went to Snape’s office, knowing that the man had a free period. He raised his hand to knock, but paused when he saw the engraving of a snake on the door, not unlike the one on the sink hiding the chamber entrance. 

_ “Open,” _ he hissed just to give it a try, and the door clicked open. Hadrian grinned slightly as he entered the office. Snape looked up from where he sat at his desk grading papers, looking startled for a moment, but it quickly faded.

“Hello professor,” said Hadrian sitting in one of the chairs in front of Snape’s desk. 

“Don’t you have class?” asked Snape, his eyes narrowed slightly, but he didn’t seem entirely sure about how he should act.

“I have it covered,” said Hadrian and Snape’s eyes moved to Hadrian’s neck and he nodded, making Hadrian assume that he was aware of the time turner. “I was wondering if you had time to read what I left you.”

Snape pulled open a drawer in his desk and took out the copy of the Potters’ will and placed it on his desk. There was a moment of silence where the two just stared at each other.

“I take it you read it then and that you saw my mother’s note about you near the end?” he asked.

“Yes,” said Snape.

“Did you know anything about that before?” he asked. 

“No, I did not,” said Snape a slight edge to his voice as his anger shown through. “Their will was never made public and I was not present for the reading of their will.” 

“I’m not surprised,” said Hadrian, “it took me quite a while to go through the process of having it unsealed. Apparently Dumbledore had it sealed after their deaths.”

Snape’s lips thinned as he frowned at this. 

“But that doesn’t matter at the moment,” continued Hadrian with a small wave of his hand. “I figured that you never saw it and I thought that you should. I did not show it to you because I want something or expect something from you. No, I showed it to you because at the beginning of my first year you apologized to me, and I forgave you. Now I wanted you to know that my mother forgave you as well for whatever actions tour you apart when you were younger.”

There was another long moment of silence as Snape seemed to absorb this information. Hadrian waited, giving the man some time to think over his words before speaking up again.

“Would I be able to use your classroom?” he asked causing Snape to look at him in confusion. Hadrian pulled out a book on advanced potions and opened it up to a marked page. “I was hoping perhaps you could help me make this. It’s just for practice.” 

“Alright,” said Snape after a moment, rising from his seat. The two walked to the potions classroom which was near his office. 

Hadrian put the book down on one of the tables and wandlessly summoned the necessary ingredients as he began setting up a cauldron, aware of Snape’s eyes on him the entire time. He began wordlessly preparing the potion and Snape moved to stand next to him, still watching his every movement. After a couple minutes Snape snorted slightly causing Hadrian to glance up at him.

“You don’t need my help,” Snape said and Hadrian shrugged.

“I never said I needed your help,” he replied, “but I certainly wouldn’t mind it.”

After a brief moment Snape picked up a knife and began chopping ingredients with him. The two worked in silence and Hadrian found himself grinning slightly. Though Hadrian was forced to leave to go to class before the potion was done. He bid Snape farewell as he left the classroom. He hoped that Snape would continue to think on what he said, especially the comment about Dumbledore. 

He went outside and met up with Neville, Hermione, Draco, Theo, and Blaise as they headed to Care of Magical Creatures. Hadrian was looking forward to the class since Hagrid would be teaching it, but he was slightly nervous about what type of creatures Hagrid planned on showing them. After all, this was the man who tried to hatch a dragon in his wooden hut. 

The class gathered near Hagrid’s hut and he led them to the edge of the forest. For a moment Hadrian was worried that Hagrid was going to bring them into the forest and he was relieved when they stopped at the edge of the trees in front of a wooden paddock. 

Hagrid instructed them to take out their books and Hadrian saw that besides him and his friends, no one had figured out that you needed to stroke the spine to stop the book from attacking. Hadrian had figured it out with the help of Death, who had eventually told him what to do after laughing as Hadrian struggled with the book, and had then told his friends. 

After that Hagrid went into the paddock to get the creatures, which turned out to be hippogriffs. There were a few oohs and aahs as the creatures were brought closer and Hadrian had to agree that they really were rather beautiful, their coats and feathers a glossy array of colors. 

“Who wants ter come closer and meet them?” asked Hagrid and Hadrian saw that the majority of the class was moving away from the paddock in alarm.

“I would,” said Hadrian after a moment when it became apparent that no one else planned on volunteering. He walked to the fence and he easily jumped over it in one fluid motion.

“Be careful,” whispered Draco and he heard Lavender Brown remind him about what Trelawney had said about his imminent death and had to restrain himself from rolling his eyes. 

“How bout you try your luck with Buckbeak,” said Hagrid, grinning gratefully at Hadrian who gave him a small smile in return. 

Hadrian approached the gray hippogriff with caution before bowing low to him. There was a long tense moment where it looked like Buckbeak might not return the bow, but then the hippogriff dropped down into what was unmistakably a graceful bow. Hadrian walked up to the creature and stroked his feathers gently. 

“He likes you Hadrian,” said Hagrid sounding proud, “I think he’ll let you ride him.”

Before Hadrian realized what was happening Hagrid lifted him up and put him on Buckbeak’s back and the hippogriff took off, taking them around the paddock once. Hadrian wrapped his arms around Buckbeak’s neck in alarm, careful not to pull out any of his feathers. When the hippogriff landed Hadrian jumped off. He definitely preferred flying with his cloak, or even on a broomstick, though he still did enjoy the overall feeling of flight. 

Hadrian stood back and watched as the others approached the hippogriffs and some were also able to take short flights around the paddock. 

Out of the corner of his eye Hadrian caught movement in the forest, but when he turned there was nothing there. He ignored it assuming that it was just an animal, but then he saw it again, and whatever it was, it was large. He scanned the trees and sent out a small concentrated wave of his magic to test the area, searching for life forces among the trees. He didn’t find any life forces, but his magic did brush against something and his eyes narrowed when he felt the familiar energy, fleeing from his magic. What was a reaper doing at Hogwarts? He knew for a fact that no reapers should be there, no one was scheduled to die, not that he was aware of at least.

_ “No one at Hogwarts is scheduled to die,” _ Death informed him, listening to his thoughts,  _ “there should be no reapers here.” _

Hadrian could detect an edge of anger in Death’s voice and had to force himself not to react. Even though it wasn’t directed at him, Death’s anger was still terrifying.  

_ “Is there any reason for a reaper to be here?” _ asked Hadrian,  _ “Could they be reporting to me?” _

But he knew after he asked that the answer was no, if the reaper wanted to speak with him, why would it flee from him?

_ “There is no reason for the reaper to be here,” _ replied Death,  _ “The reaper may have gone rogue. You are the Head Reaper, do your job and take care of it.” _

_ “Rogue?” _ asked Hadrian,  _ “Reapers can go rogue?” _

_ “Yes,” _ said Death in a cold hiss,  _ “unfortunately, though it is rare. Any reaper who fails to reap a soul marked to die or who kills someone before their time is considered to have gone rogue.” _

_ “What do you do to rogue reapers?” _

_ “Kill them.” _

Death’s voice was cold and anyone else would have been terrified by it. 

Hadrian was broken out of his thoughts as Draco rode Buckbeak around the paddock. He turned back to his friends, but he continued to scan the area around him with his magic searching for the reaper. He couldn’t help but hope that the reaper hadn’t gone rogue and was here for some other reason. He had been training with Yong, but he wasn’t sure that he could take a reaper in a fight. But he would make sure that this reaper didn’t hurt anyone at Hogwarts.  


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

By the second week of school Hadrian had become very comfortable with using the time turner and was using it even when he didn’t have two classes at the same time. While he was in class he would use it to go down to the chamber and would research how to reunite Tom Riddle’s soul and create a new body for him using the Book of the Dead and the Philosopher’s Stone.

He also continued to visit Snape when the potion master had breaks. They would meet in the dungeons and Hadrian would practice working on more difficult potions while Snape graded papers. Hadrian would ask Snape questions and for his advice on making different potions. Though he could figure it out himself Snape truly was an expert in the art of potion making and deserved the title of potions master. Hadrian filled the margins of his potions books with Snape’s advice and tips.

Besides that the two rarely spoke. Hadrian didn’t bring up Dumbledore and the information that he had told Snape about him. He wanted Snape to come to his own conclusions about Dumbledore, though he would help push him in the right direction. But he didn’t think it would be difficult to make Snape stop working for Dumbledore, since after all, everything Hadrian had told him was true. Dumbledore’s own decisions would cause his followers to grow suspicious and turn against him.

When Draco found out that Hadrian was spending time with Snape Hadrian told him about what it said on his parents’ will. Draco began referring to Snape as their godfather and Hadrian began calling him Severus outside of class on Draco’s urging. Draco would occasionally join them in the potions classroom on his breaks when he could.

Later the next week he went down to the chamber one night to continue working when he felt a familiar energy as he walked through the tunnels towards the chamber itself. He frowned as he recognized the energy of a reaper. He could recognize Yong, but there was a second reaper as well. Hadrian cautiously entered the chamber, his blade leaping into his hand with a single thought. He had no trouble seeing in the dim light of the chamber as he walked towards the center where two figures stood as though waiting for him.

One of the figures was Yong like he had thought. The reaper looked much the same as the last time Hadrian had seen him dressed all in black and with short spiky hair. Yong looked bored, inhuman purple eyes watching Hadrian approach.

Next to Yong stood a tall woman that looked like what Hadrian imaged a valkyrie would look like. She had long, dirty blonde hair pulled back in a braid and startlingly blue eyes. She was dressed in worn Norse style battle armour and she had large feathered silvery white wings. In her hand she held a spear that Hadrian recognized as a reaper blade. She was beautiful in a dangerous way.

As Hadrian approached the two reapers Yong gave him a polite nod while the other reaper bowed respectfully to him.

“What’s going on?” asked Hadrian cooly as the reaper straightened up. “There are not supposed to be reapers here at Hogwarts.”

He raised an eyebrow at them, waiting for their response. He knew that it wasn’t Yong that he had sensed in the forest that day and he didn’t think it was this other reaper, but he couldn’t be sure.  

“Forgive me-” began the blonde reaper, but Yong cut her off.

“We have a problem,” spoke up Yong, “a reaper has gone rogue.”

Hadrian sighed, damn, he was hoping that the reaper hadn’t actually gone rogue and was just curious about the boy Death had supposedly made immortal and put in charge of the reapers. But if the reaper had gone rogue, and believed Yong, then he would have to deal with it.

“And who are you?” Hadrian asked the blonde, “I don’t believe we have met.”

“I am Hildr,” said the reaper, “and I am here because I have come across several people who should be dead who are still very much alive.”

“I discovered her trying to contact you and stopped her,” said Yong. Hadrian nodded, he had suspected for a while that Yong was keeping an eye on him. “I thought she had gone rogue.”

Hildr’s eyes narrowed in anger for a moment before she seemed to force herself to relax. “I am not rogue, I am just here to report what I had discovered, since it is the Head Reaper’s job to handle all reapers who do go rogue.”

Hadrian nodded, “Yes, and I will handle it. I had suspected that a reaper had gone rogue but did not want to move forward until I was certain. Thank you for alerting me of the situation.”

Hadrian reached into his bag and summoned the book he was recording all information about reapers in and handed it to Hildr with a quill. “Could you write your name and what type of people you reap in here please.”

Hildr took the book and quill from him and opened it to an empty page. She wrote in the book for a moment then touched her spear to the page causing a sigil to appear and glow for a moment. Hadrian thanked her and put away the book. After handing back the book Hildr suddenly turned and seemed to stare into the distance.

“I must go,” she told them and then disappeared with a flutter of wings.

Hadrian turned back to Yong who he could tell was also planning on leaving.

“Wait,” said Hadrian and Yong did, raising an eyebrow at him, looking uninterested. “Would you be able to help me find and stop this reaper?”

Yong didn’t answer right away and for a moment Hadrian thought that the reaper would outright refuse to help him, but then Yong nodded.

“I have to be in Mexican City by midnight, but I can help you until then.”

The two took off and left the chamber. Hadrian used his invisibility cloak to turn invisible as they walked through the castle. Yong simply walked beside him knowing that others could not see reapers. Hadrian opened his Sight to search for the reaper and extended his magic out around him, but he didn’t see or sense the reaper nearby. He knew that he would probably get nowhere just walking around and searching the school and grounds like this.

“Do you have any idea where the reaper is?” he asked Yong quietly. Yong stood still for a moment and scanned the area slowly before taking off. Hadrian ran after Yong, struggling to keep up. Hadrian followed Yong out of the school and he realized that they were heading towards the forest. Had the reaper stayed there the entire time? Hadrian wanted to groan, he hoped that Yong had a good idea of where this reaper was, otherwise their chances of finding the reaper anytime soon were slim. The forest was huge and Hadrian didn’t want to have to confront the reaper without Yong.

Yong slowed near the edge of the trees and allowed Hadrian to catch up before they entered the dark forest. Hadrian could see just fine and he could hear the sounds of nocturnal animals coming out to hunt. Yong’s blade appeared in the reaper’s hand and Hadrian gripped his own blade tighter as he scanned the area around him for the rogue reaper. As they walked silently through the trees, Yong occasionally pausing and changing their direction, Hadrian realized something.

“How do you kill a reaper?” he blurted out causing Yong to pause for a moment.

“Reaper blades can kill reapers,” said Yong once they started moving again. “Do you know what reapers are, how they are created?”

“No,” said Hadrian, “Death has failed to tell me that.”

“Reapers are created from energy after someone dies,” Yong told him.

“Like magic left behind after a wizard dies?” asked Hadrian.

“No, it is not magic, but life force left behind after a soul is taken though a wizard’s magic is linked with their life force. Typically this energy remains behind and returns to the environment along with any magic the person may have or can be collected by a reaper, though reapers don’t usually collect it since we don’t need life force. You have collected life force along with magic before.”

Hadrian nodded.  

“But if there is enough life energy,” continued Yong, “such as after a battle, the energy can come together to create a reaper. The life energy that the reaper was created from determines what type of people they kill. They can sense the life forces of those similar to themselves. I was created in the Sengoku period in Japan after a group of shinobi took out a group of high ranking officials.”

“So is that why you look like a ninja?” asked Hadrian with a slight smirk. Yong glanced at him and Hadrian thought that the reaper looked slightly amused.

“Yes,” said Yong, “I have taken a form crafted after the place of my origin and the shinobi that killed the officials allowing for me to be created. Reapers usually take an appearance similar to those who died when they were created or their killers. Though some change overtime, taking the appearance of someone whose soul they reaped or changing to fit human beliefs about reapers.”

“Like Hildr, she looked like a valkyrie,” said Hadrian, and since Yong seemed to be in a surprisingly chatty mood, he decided to ask another question. “How do you know when someone is about to die?”

“Reapers have a death sense,” said Yong, “we just know who we are supposed to reap and when.”

“You just know?” asked Hadrian, not satisfied with the answer. “But how?”

“Our death sense comes from Death,” said Yong pausing and changing direction so suddenly that Hadrian almost walked into the reaper. “Death knows who will die and when they will die from Fate.”

Hadrian had heard Death refer to Fate a few times as though Fate was a being and not just a concept, but Death wouldn’t tell him much about Fate, though Hadrian got the idea that Death wasn’t a big fan of Fate.

“So who exactly is Fate?” asked Hadrian when Yong was silent.

“Reapers do not meet Fate,” said Yong dismissively, “No one truly knows. Fate has taken many forms. If you want to know about her, ask Death. They say that back in the beginning Death and Fate’s original forms were that of sisters.”

“Sisters?” said Hadrian in disbelief, trying to imagine that family reunion.  

“Yes,” replied Yong, “Fate is said to be Death’s younger sister, created to reign in the chaos that is Death.”

“Chaos that is Death?” asked Hadrian raising an eyebrow.

“Death is chaos, Fate is balance,” said Yong, “think about the Death that you know and tell me that the being is not chaotic.”

Hadrian didn’t reply for a long moment as he thought it over. Since Death had entered Hadrian’s life the being had been messing around with it. The fact that Hadrian was alive was proof of that. Death seemed to find amusement in watching Hadrian, a being who shouldn’t be alive, and throwing him into different situations. Appearing out of nowhere and dragging Hadrian to Diagon Alley in the middle of the night, messing with Dumbledore at the orphanage, encouraging Hadrian to become a dark lord and to help a former dark lord who should be dead return to life.

Death had created gods of old and watched over their reigns until becoming bored and killing them off. Everything Death did was for the being’s own amusement. Death was the type of being who would push boundaries until the world burned and then move onto the next one. But the reason Death didn’t do this was because something was restraining the being, and from what Yong was saying, Fate was the one stopping Death, putting restrictions on who lived and who died and laying out a plan for people’s lives. Death still pushed the boundaries and sometimes broke through them in the case of Hadrian himself, but overall Fate helped control Death.

“Fate must hate me,” Hadrian muttered to himself but Yong still heard him.

“Yes, there is no doubt that Fate hates you,” said Yong.

Hadrian opened his mouth to respond but he never got a chance because suddenly he felt the presence of another reaper. It was moving towards them, fast. Hadrian didn’t have time to react before something moving so fast that it appeared as only a blur to him came crashing through the trees and went barrelling into Yong. The two reapers went flying through the forest, crashing right through the thick trees and disappeared from Hadrian’s view. Hadrian blinked in shock before jumping into motion and running to catch up to the fighting reapers, following the path of destruction they had created.

When he caught up to them he paused for a moment to take in the scene. Yong was on the ground on its back. On top of Yong was a massive animal that looked like a cross between a hyena and a dog. It had a large chest and wide shoulders and its front legs looked slightly longer than its back legs. It had tall pointy ears and its fur along its spine stuck up in spikes. Its fur was a dark green and shaggy and it was heavily muscled. It had black eyes and its face was mostly taken up by its large muzzle which was full of long sharp teeth. Hadrian realized that the reaper had taken the form of a cu sith, the Scottish variation of a grim reaper.    

The animal was snapping and snarling at Yong, but Yong was managing to push against the creature, both hands pushing against its neck, keeping the snapping jaws from ripping its throat out. Hadrian ran forward gripping his blade tight and raised it above the creature's shoulder blades, but just as he was bringing it down the cu sith seemed to realize that he was there and jumped to the side out of the path of the blade and turned to face Hadrian, snarling. But this meant that Yong was no longer being pinned down and the reaper was on its feet in a moment and charging at the other reaper. The cu sith ignored Yong and leaped towards Hadrian, dodging out of the way of Yong’s attack at the same time. Hadrian held his ground as the cu sith leaped towards him. At the last moment he dropped down, hitting the ground hard, so that the cu sith soared over him. But one of the cu sith’s claws sliced into his right shoulder and he cried out in pain. He reached up and grabbed his shoulder, but he didn’t feel blood like he had expected. Looking at his shoulder he saw that there was no cut and he realized what had happened a moment later, his eyes widening. He looked over at the cu sith which had turned back to face him and Yong. Now that he was really looking he could see the strange appearance of the cu sith’s long black claws. He was just able to make out swirling movement and when the cu sith growled he could see that the creature’s teeth were actually black with swirling movement as well. Its teeth and claws were its reaper’s blade. A reaper’s blade was an extension of a reaper’s power and for this reaper it was a literal extension of its body.

Yong and Hadrian faced off against the snarling cu sith all of them at a standstill. The cu sith was the one who attacked first, lunging for Hadrian again, but this time Hadrian knew that he wouldn’t be able to dodge in time. The cu sith wasn’t high enough off the ground for him to drop under it again and though he was fast, faster than a normal human and he was becoming faster with time and practice, he was still not as fast as a reaper. He tried to jump to the left knowing that he wouldn’t get out of the way in time, when he was slammed into.

It took him a moment to realize that it wasn't the cu sith that had hit him but that Yong had tackled him hard, knocking the breath out of him. For a brief moment of terror Hadrian thought that Yong had turned against him and was attacking him. But Yong’s arms wrapped around Hadrian and the reaper held him to its chest  so that Hadrian’s back was pressed against Yong’s front and jumped out of the path of the cu sith just missing the creature's claws. But now they were heading towards a large tree and Hadrian braced himself to hit the tree when Yong twisted in the air still holding Hadrian against its chest preventing Hadrian from hitting the tree. Yong’s back hit the tree instead and Hadrian heard the tree crack and felt the vibrations run though his body from where he was still pressed against Yong.

The cu sith had landed right where Hadrian had been standing and skidded as he turned to face them again, charging towards them. Hadrian didn’t know what to do with Yong still clutching him against the reaper’s chest, but Yong hurled him to the side so that he landed hard on the forest floor but out of the path of the cu sith which hit Yong hard.

Hadrian leapt to his feet to see the cu sith on its hind legs with Yong holding one of each of its paws pushing back against the cu sith as it pushed Yong back against the tree which was groaning under the force. He could see that Yong was struggling to stay out of the range of the cu sith’s jaws and Yong couldn't use its blade with both hands holding back the cu sith.

Hadrian ran forward clutching his blade and plunged it into the cu sith’s back making it cry out in pain making a high pitched whine. The cu sith struggled more trying to turn to get at Hadrian but Yong continued to grip its paws preventing it from getting at Hadrian who brought his blade down again sinking it deep into the cu sith’s shoulder blade. His blade made no actual marks on the cu sith’s body but with his Sight he could see deep cuts appearing in the cu sith’s body. A regular animal would have been dead, but the cu sith was still struggling against Yong and didn’t appear to be dying. Hadrian stabbed the cu sith again not sure what else to do.

“It’s energy,” hissed Yong, dodging the cu sith’s jaws. “Slash apart the energy, destroy its form!”

Hadrian looked closer at the cu sith with his Sight examining the energy that made it up. When he looked close he could see that the cu sith’s body was made up of different energies put together, the many life energies of those that had allowed it to be created and take form. Hadrian used his blade to slash at the energy, separating it. The energy that formed the cu sith’s body began to break apart and the cu sith tried one more time to try and get away, but Yong held firm even when one of the claws caught the reaper across the chest.

Hadrian could feel it when the energy that made up the cu sith’s body finally separated and burst apart. There was a bright flash of blinding light as the reaper lost its form, the cu sith’s body dissolving so Hadrian could just see the energy that had made it up before the energy began to fade away into the environment.

Hadrian stood staring at the area where the cu sith had been as Yong straightened up, fixing the damaged tree with a flick of its hand. Hadrian just stood there for a moment still clutching his blade, breathing hard.

“What the hell was that?” he exclaimed after a long moment of silence.

Yong glanced up at him from where the reaper was fixing another damaged tree. “Like I explained to you earlier, reapers are made from life energy from deaths. You used your blade to separate the life energy that allowed the reaper to maintain its form, and so therefore you killed it.”

“I get that,” said Hadrian, “but what I don’t understand is why it just attacked us like that.”

“It probably wanted to kill you rather than follow you as the new Head Reaper and tried to take me out first seeing me as the larger threat and as someone who betrayed the reapers by following you. Though he was the real betrayer, disobeying the orders of Death itself and ignoring those whose souls he was supposed to reap,” explained Yong.

Hadrian’s magic curled around his blade and it disappeared. He looked up at the sky where he could just make out the moon climbing higher in the sky as Yong continued to fix the damage from the fight.  

“Wait!” Hadrian suddenly cried, “What time is it? Do you have time to get to Mexico City?”

He cast a quick tempus and was glad to see that it was just after eleven. Yong chuckled, a strange sound coming from the normally serious reaper.

“I have plenty of time yet,” said Yong, “I have no plans to go rogue.”

“Good,” said Hadrian with a small smile, “because I don’t want to have to kill you.”

“I’d like to see you try,” replied Yong with a smirk, then Yong’s eyes widened and the reaper was suddenly standing right in front of Hadrian. “Your shoulder.”

“Yeah, it was cut in the fight, but really it’s nothing…” he trailed off as he looked at his shoulder through his Sight and saw that there was no cut, his shoulder was fine, it didn’t even hurt he realized. He reached up and touched his shoulder though he knew the cut had never been physical. “That’s weird.”

“Death truly does favor you,” said Yong, it’s voice low.

“What about you?” asked Hadrian looking at the deep cut in Yong’s chest with his Sight. “Are you alright?”

“I will be fine,” said Yong, “it will heal within a few days. But I will have to try and train you more. You managed tonight because I was here, and though it seems a reaper cannot truly hurt you, you need to be more prepared.”

Hadrian nodded and glanced at the path of damaged trees left behind by the two fighting reapers.

“I’ve got this,” said Yong, “go ahead and head back to the castle. You can manage that alright, can’t you?”

“Oh, Yong,” said Hadrian with a grin, “it sounds like you almost care about me.”

“It does seem that way doesn’t it,” said Yong with a frown, “though I shouldn’t since I know you will be fine.”

Hadrian grinned at the reaper before turning and heading back to the castle. He took into the air with his cloak and floated above the trees to save time. Death had been oddly quiet and Hadrian wondered if it was just because Death had wanted him to handle the rogue reaper on his own or if it had to do with something Yong had said. Hadrian had a feeling that Death wouldn’t be happy with Yong telling him about Fate and sent a silent thought out to the being to not be angry with the reaper.

 _“I will not harm the reaper,”_ said Death after a moment and Hadrian thought he could make out a shadowy figure floating just next to him. _“Even though he spoke of things he should not have.”_

_“Someone needs to tell me this stuff, and you didn’t.”_

Death seemed to sigh before answering, _“I guess that is true. I have kept Fate away from you knowing that she would try to take away your immortality. She never allows me to have any fun. She loves her rules too much to ever try and break them every once in awhile. Though I guess you will have to meet her eventually. You will need something from her to help you bring back Tom Riddle.”_

Hadrian arrived back at the castle. He hadn’t realized just how far he had travelled with Yong. He snuck back into the castle and went back to the chamber rather than his dorm room. He entered Slytherin’s hidden chamber and pulled out Tom’s mirror. He wished he had managed to grab some of the life force from the reaper to allow Tom to take on a temporary physical form. Perhaps he should look into a way to do that while he continued to work on creating a new body for him.

He chatted with Tom for a little while but he began feeling tired. At some point while they were talking he had pulled out the diadem and was running his fingers along it, enjoying the soft hum of Tom’s soul within it. He found himself becoming relaxed by the gentle hum and soon fell asleep in the study clutching the locket.  


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

Quidditch practice started up a few weeks into school and Ginny tried out for the Gryffindor team and became the new seeker. Ginny was brilliant on a broom and though her typical position was that of a chaser, Gryffindor had been in desperate need for a good seeker; a role Ginny easily filled. Ginny and the twins were practicing constantly, their Quidditch captain, Oliver Wood, was pushing them hard, determined to win the Quidditch Cup before he graduated.

This had the other teams trying to step up their game as well and they also increased their practices to try and keep up with the Gryffindors. This kept Hadrian busy with the Ravenclaw team and Draco and Cedric were also busy as the seekers on the Hufflepuff and Slytherin teams. Hadrian would use his time turner during practice to allow him to meet with those who didn’t have practice and to work on his assignments. Hadrian did his best to work around everyone’s schedules to continue to train them and teach them in the Room of Requirement. He was using his time turner even more to allow him to meet with people on their breaks and make it to all his classes and to continue meeting with Severus when he could. He was lucky that he didn’t need much sleep, otherwise he wasn’t sure when he would manage to get all his work done and work with his friends.

Hadrian was enjoying his classes overall. Though Divination continued to be a joke and Hermione looked about ready to strangle Trelawney each class. Trelawney continued to predict Hadrian’s death each class much to Hermione's annoyance, though Neville looked slightly concerned for Hadrian’s well being, but he assured Neville that he would be fine. Hadrian found the whole thing to be rather amusing. In his assignments he found that he could get full marks if he just wrote predictions of horrible deaths, the more violent the better.

He just hoped that Hermione would make it through the year with all her classes. He was trying to convince her to just drop Divination now so she would have one less class to worry about, since on like him Hermione did need plenty of sleep to function. But Hermione seemed determined to get through the class.    

As Halloween approached all the third years were looking forward to their first trip to Hogsmeade, the small town near Hogwarts. Hadrian wasn’t allowed to go since he didn’t have a guardian to sign his permission form. Somehow he didn’t think it would go over well if he tried to explain that the closest thing to a guardian he had was Death. Plus he doubted that even if he did have a signed permission slip he would be allowed to go to Hogsmeade. With Sirius Black on the loose everyone seemed to think that he would be coming after Hadrian to finish his master’s work, and Hadrian wasn’t ready to reveal the truth yet. Though when the truth did come out he planned on having _Metis_ be the first paper to report on it.

His friends suggested that he use his cloak, which he had told them about at the end of last year, and sneak into Hogsmeade through one of the secret passages on the Marauder’s Map. But Hadrian told them he had some things that he wanted to do that would be easier with the majority of the castle being empty. He assured them that he would be fine and that they should go and have fun. They all promised to bring him back things from the shops and he gave them money, insisting that they didn’t need to use their own money to buy him things when he had plenty of money of his own.

He had also gathered items together for him to perform a Samhain ritual. He had planned to perform the ritual last year but had been unable to due to Ginny writing the message about the Chamber of Secrets. He had been with her the majority of the night and none of the others would have been able to leave their dorms with all the professors out looking for the person who wrote the message. He was hoping to be able to perform at least a shortened variation of the ritual earlier tonight since he knew he would be busy later on.

According to Dobby Sirius Black would be arriving in Hogsmeade that day and Hadrian assumed that he would use the crowd of Hogwarts students to his advantage to get into the town and would later sneak into the shrieking shack when no one was around to use the passage leading to Hogwarts. He would then try to get into the castle that night to kill Pettigrew, which meant that Hadrian had to make his move before Black entered the castle.

Hadrian said goodbye to his friends heading to Hogsmeade and spent the morning in the Room of Requirement with Luna and Ginny who as second years weren’t able to go to Hogsmeade. He left them to work on their assignments after lunch and checked the Marauder’s Map, which he had borrowed from the twins, though he really should make a map of his own, and checked that the person he was looking for was were he expected him to be before heading off.

He went to the Defense classroom and was just in time to bump into Lupin who was bringing a large tank into his classroom.

“Hello professor,” Hadrian greeted him, pausing to look into the tank which held a grindylow.

“Hello Hadrian,” said Lupin with a smile, “Why aren’t you in Hogsmeade?”

“I don’t have a signed permission slip,” he replied with a shrug. “But my friends are bringing some things back for me.”

Lupin hummed quietly in understanding, but Hadrian thought his eyes looked sad.

“Would you like to join me for some tea?” asked Lupin and Hadrian nodded, following the professor into his classroom. He sat in one of the chairs in front of Lupin’s desk as Lupin prepared tea and pulled out a tray of biscuits.

“I only have tea bags,” said Lupin, “but I’m sure that you’re sick of tea leaves anyway.”

Hadrian groaned comically making Lupin chuckle.

“Yes!” he exclaimed, “Trelawney sees nothing but death in my future. Me and Hermione even switched cups one class and she was still convinced that she saw the grim in my cup. Though it makes assignments easy, I just have to predict my own demise and I get full marks.”

Lupin chuckled and shook his head. “Trelawney is certainly a character, though supposedly she has spoken prophecies before.”

Hadrian snorted, though unlike Lupin he was aware that Trelawney had spoken the prophecy that had brought Voldemort to his family’s home in Godric’s Hollow those twelve years ago. He wouldn’t mind asking Fate why she had chosen Trelawney of all people to deliver the prophecy.

They were interrupted by a knock on the door as Severus entered holding a goblet, its contents emitting a faint blue smoke. Severus looked surprised to see Hadrian there, but Hadrian had told Severus that he wasn’t able to go to Hogsmeade to which Severus had told him that it was for the best with Black around.

“I have your potion,” Severus told Lupin who smiled.

“Thank you, Severus, please put it here.”

Severus placed the potion on the desk where Lupin indicated and Hadrian smiled at the potions master who gave him a small nod before walking briskly from the room. Lupin picked up the goblet and took a sip grimacing at the taste and Hadrian winced in sympathy. He knew that the potion was Wolfsbane and that it was said to taste horrible.

“That bad?” he asked as Lupin’s face twisted with the next sip.

“It is rather horrendous,” said Lupin, “and unfortunately sugar can’t be added. I’m very lucky though, I’ve been feeling under the weather lately and this potion helps, but the potion is very difficult and few can make it. Professor Snape is one of those few able to make it and has agreed to make it for me.”

Hadrian nodded pretending that this was all new to him and that he didn’t know what the potion was and what it was for. He had forgotten that there would be a full moon that night even though he had been with Severus when the potions master had prepared the potion a week earlier. Unlike other potions to work the Wolfsbane Potion had to be consumed for a week leading up to the full moon. Hadrian had offered to help make the difficult potion, but Severus didn't let him, not trusting Hadrian to work on the potion despite knowing that he was skilled in the art of potion making. He planned on gathering the ingredients to practice making the potion in the chamber. It would be good practice making such a difficult potion and he felt it was something he should know how to prepare. Wolfsbane Potions eased the symptoms of lycanthropy and would allow the werewolf to hold on to their mental facilities after the transformation though it was not a cure. The person would still transform, but they would be an ordinary wolf.

Hadrian sipped his tea and waited for Lupin to finish his potion before speaking again.

“Professor, I have a question,” he said and Lupin nodded for him to continue. “Is it true that the only spell that works to defend oneself from a dementor is expecto patronum?”

Hadrian already knew the answer but he didn't want to seem like he knew too much about dementors in case it appeared odd.

“Yes it is,” said Lupin with a nod.

“Will we learn it in class?” asked Hadrian. He had been practicing the spell but so far had only managed to produce a small silvery mist to his annoyance. He hoped to master the spell and teach it to his friends. Though dementors didn’t affect him he thought it would be a useful spell to learn and it could be used in situations outside of dementor attacks.  

“Not third years I’m afraid,” said Lupin, “it's a very difficult spell so only the older students learn it.”

Hadrian nodded, not surprised by the answer though he had been hoping it would be different.  

“When a proper patronus is cast it forms a physical form, correct?” asked Hadrian.

“Yes,” said Lupin, “though some are only able to produce a mist with no form.”

Hadrian nodded, “The name makes sense, expecto patronum, I await a protector.”

Lupin raised an eyebrow at him. “Do you know Latin?”

“I do,” said Hadrian, “I met someone at the orphanage who taught me.”

He figured this was a safe response compared to telling him that he learned Latin from Death while working in the being’s garden.

“Orphanage?” asked Lupin in confusion, eyes widening.

“Yes,” said Hadrian, “Wool’s Orphanage in London. That's where I grew up.”

“I thought you lived with relatives,” said Remus, still sounding confused.

Hadrian shrugged, “I heard about that, apparently Dumbledore left me on their doorstep, but they must not have wanted to take in another child, so they brought me to the orphanage when I was a baby.”

He felt bad for lying to Lupin, after all he had been his father’s friend, but at least they were little lies. Now was not the time to tell the truth.

“I, I didn’t know that,” said Lupin frowning, “Dumbledore said you were with family.”

“I don’t think Dumbledore realized what happened until he came to talk to me about Hogwarts,” said Hadrian.

There was a long silence as Lupin didn’t seem to know what to say and Hadrian just sipped his tea, picking up a biscuit. Eventually Hadrian broke the silence by asking about the grindylow and they chatted about what the third years would be doing and learning the rest of the year. Hadrian thanked Lupin for the tea and headed out onto the school grounds.

He pulled out the Marauder's Map and used it to walk towards the entrance to the passage that lead to the shrieking shack. When he got near the passage he looked around and frowned. Where the passage should have been according to the map was a huge tree. And it wasn’t just any tree he realized, it was the whomping willow, a tree that would attack anything that got too close to it. Hadrian frowned down at the map before looking up at the tree again.

Movement next to him caught his attention and he turned to see Crookshanks sitting next to him. He gave the ginger cat a small smile before looking back at the map.

“There’s supposed to be a passage leading off school grounds here,” he told the cat, “any ideas?”

Crookshanks flicked his bushy tail before rising to his feet and bounding towards the tree. Hadrian cried out in alarm, fearing that the tree would crush the cat, and he definitely didn’t want to explain to Hermione how he got her cat killed. But Crookshanks dodged the moving tree branches with ease until he got to the tree trunk and the tree stopped moving, its branches seeming to freeze in place.

Hadrian made his way cautiously towards the tree trunk and Crookshanks. He looked down at the cat who had both his paws on a large knot on one of the tree’s branches.

“So you press that and the tree stops moving,” he muttered to himself. Then spoke to Crookshanks. “Thank you.”

Crookshanks flicked his tail and took off across the school grounds. Hadrian watched the cat walk off for a moment before turning to examine the tree, not sure how long the tree would remain frozen. He quickly spotted the gap between the roots large enough for a grown man to fit between and lowered himself down into the passage. He began walking, not bothering to light the passage since his eyes easily adjusted to the dark. The passage was long and tree roots were hanging from the ceiling. He wasn’t sure how long he walked before the passage began to slowly slope upwards. At the end of the passage he could make out a wooden trapdoor in the ceiling and pushed it open.

He entered what looked like a decaying house in a room that once was probably a living room or sitting room of some kind. The furniture was in ruins and he realized that it wasn’t just from old age that had caused the furniture to fall apart, but it appeared that something had destroyed it. He frowned as he examined the house and he could see that the dust was disturbed; someone else had been here recently.

His eyes landed on what looked like a paw print in a patch of dust and he frowned. The pawprint was too large to be Crookshanks and Dobby hadn’t told him that Black had arrived in the shack yet. It looked like the pawprint of a large dog, or…

_“Please tell me I’m wrong.”_

_“I’m afraid that I would be lying if I told you that,”_ replied Death and Hadrian thought the being sounded amused.  

Hadrian groaned and ran a hand through his hair. This was where Lupin came to transform each full moon. That was probably why the shrieking shack was considered to be haunted. The noises people heard were Lupin when he transformed. Sirius Black was aware that Lupin was a werewolf and tonight was a full moon, so would he still try to go through the shack to enter the school? Did he even know that Lupin was teaching at Hogwarts? Probably not, so he would try to get through the shack that night. The question was, would he make it onto the school grounds before Lupin arrived or would he be able to get by Lupin? Wolfsbane often caused the werewolf to just sleep through the transformation so Black might just try to sneak past Lupin in his dog form.

But perhaps this would work out in his favor. It was about time that Black and Lupin got the chance to talk. If anyone deserved to know the truth about Black it was Lupin. The two had been old friends in school and Lupin believed that Black had brought about the death of their other friend and his wife.

Hadrian pulled out his wand and began to clean up the shack, removing dust and fixing the broken furniture and peeling paint. It took him awhile to repair the shack and he could see that it was growing dark outside and he made his way to the dining room and lit the lights. He called Dobby and had the elf bring him food and bring Peter Pettigrew to him. He also told him to tell his friends that he wouldn’t be at the feast, but that he would try to meet them to hold a Samhain ritual later.

“Will that be all sir?” asked Dobby after bringing the food and Pettigrew in his cage.

“Just give the others my message and then you’re good,” Hadrian told him, “you can go ahead and take the rest of the night off, and tomorrow too.”

“Thank you sir!” squeaked Dobby before disappearing with a snap of his fingers.

Hadrian sat at the head of the dining room table with Pettigrew's cage on the ground next to him covered with a cloth. He had put preserving charms on the food to keep it warm. Now he just had to wait to see who would arrive first, Lupin or Black. He had set wards around the place to alert him when someone entered the shack.

He found himself absent mindedly twirling his wand around his fingers as he waited. He hoped he was right about Black coming through the shrieking shack, it was already going to be interesting enough explaining to Lupin why he was there.

After close to twenty minutes of waiting he felt a ripple move through the air as his wards were triggered. Someone had entered the shack by the back door. That would be Black since Lupin would be entering from the school via the trapdoor. Hadrian could hear movement and then a large, black dog appeared in the doorway to the dining room. The dog’s fur was shaggy and dirty and it looked way to skinny.

“Are you going to come in?” asked Hadrian spreading his hands in a welcoming gesture. “There’s plenty of food.”

There was a moment where the dog didn’t moved then suddenly the dog was gone and in its place stood Sirius Black. The man was wearing what appeared to be tattered prison garb that hung off his skinny frame. His eyes were sunken into his gaunt face and cast shadows that made them appear black. His skin was pale and waxy and reminded Hadrian of a corpse. His black hair was long and matted. His time in Azkaban made him look older.

“Come, sit down and eat,” Hadrian told him.

Hadrian smiled at the man when he didn’t move and indicated the chair next to him. Black was eyeing the food hungrily, but he looked weary and his eyes were full of suspicion when he looked at Hadrian.

“Who are you?” he asked, his voice rough from disuse.

“My apologies,” said Hadrian, “I don't look much like my parents, if anything my features come more from the Blacks, which much be disorienting for you since I’m obviously not a Black, though you did make me the Black heir.”

“Harry?” said Black in disbelief, his eyes widening.

Hadrian gave a muffled sigh before indicating the chair again.

“Please sit and eat,” he told Black, “we can continue talking. I think I have some information that you will find interesting.”

Black’s eyes lingered on the food for a moment before he turned to look back into the house in the direction of the trapdoor.

“There's something I need to do,” he muttered under his breath.

Hadrian sighed louder this time.

“Just, sit.” His voice was slightly louder and contained a small amount of his power though he remained calm. Black walked over to the table and sat in the indicated chair next to Hadrian, his dark eyes on him the entire time. “Go on, eat.”

Black only hesitated for a brief second before tearing into the food. Dobby had brought a large variety of food, probably from the school’s kitchens for the Halloween feast, and Black was eating it all. Hadrian had been planning on eating as well but seeing Black scarf down the food made him lose some of his appetite and he decided that he would wait to eat, at least until Black had gotten his fill. Hadrian waited for a lull in Black’s eating before speaking again.

“I am Harry Potter, though I go by Hadrian Peverell now,” he explained.

Black swallowed a large mouthful of food and gulped down some of the pumpkin juice.

“You need to understand,” said Sirius, in a desperate tone, his eyes gaining a wild gleam. “I didn’t betray your parents, I would never! I loved James and Lily!”

Hadrian held up his hand stopping Black. “I know.”

“You...know?” Black’s eyes widened as he ignored the food for the moment to stare at Hadrian with a strange combination of disbelief and relief in his eyes.

Hadrian raised an eyebrow and gave him an amused look.

“I’m a Ravenclaw. Once I start researching something I always find the truth. I discovered some things that didn’t add up about your situation and I began to have some doubts about what had really happened. And then my doubts were proved correct with the discovery of a certain rat.”

Hadrian reached down and picked up Pettigrew’s cage and pulled off the cloth covering it to reveal the rat.

“I present to you, Peter Pettigrew,” said Hadrian with a flourish. Black’s eyes darkened as they landed on the rat and Hadrian could see the murderous rage that crossed his face and transformed him into the wild looking man on the wanted posters. Hadrian could see Black’s body tense as he prepared to launch himself at the rat. In the cage Pettigrew was making terrified high pitched squeals and he was scrambling at the walls as he tried to find a way to escape, though there was none.

Black began to rise but Hadrian stopped him, sending his magic to wrap around Black and force him back into his seat and keep him there. He allowed Black to feel the power of his magic for a moment knowing that it would feel oppressive even though it was only a fraction of his power, not that Black knew that. Once he felt that Black got the message he pulled back his magic into his core. Sirius eyes were wide as he stared at Hadrian with shock, and Hadrian thought he could see at least a little awe. His little show of magic seemed to have calmed Sirius down for the moment and even managed to distract him from Pettigrew.

“You can’t kill Pettigrew,” said Hadrian after a moment and this immediately got Black’s attention back to the matter at hand. Hadrian held up his hand to stop Black from speaking when he opened his mouth to argue. “Listen to me-”

Hadrian stopped talking when he felt another ripple of energy come from the wards. That would be Lupin entering through the trapdoor.

“What is it?” asked Black in alarm turning to look were Hadrian was watching the doorway and began to stand. Hadrian reached out and placed a hand on Black’s shoulder and gently pushed him down into his seat. Black turned to stare at him again and Hadrian wondered when the last time Black had been touched by another human was.

“It’s fine,” said Hadrian, “the last guest has arrived.”

He had barely stopped talking when Lupin entered the room wand out and held before him. Immediately Lupin had his wand pointed at Black’s heart, but Hadrian flicked his hand and sent Lupin’s wand flying from Lupin’s hand to his. He pocketed Lupin’s wand as Lupin turned away from Black and seemed to notice him for the first time.

“Hadrian,” his voice was low and cautious and laced with fear. His eyes were back on Black and he seemed afraid to set him off. Hadrian’s hand on Black’s shoulder stopped him from rising. “You need to get away from him. Do you realize who this is? It’s Sirius Black.”

“Thank you for your concern professor,” said Hadrian calmly, “but I am well aware of who he is and I think you should sit down and listen to what he has to say. I believe that you’ll find it rather enlightening.”

Lupin seemed to be at a loss for words as he stared between Black and Hadrian, whose hand was still resting on Black’s shoulder.

“Please professor,” said Hadrian indicating the chair next to him and across from Black. “We still have time to talk.”

Lupin frowned slightly at this and Hadrian could practically see the wheels turning in his head before he slowly made his way towards the offered chair and sat down, his eyes on Black. Hadrian gave the two men a moment to stare each other down before sighing.

“Could you at least try and relax slightly?” he asked in exasperation. “I would like to have this conversation without anyone getting killed. No one will die tonight.”

“You shouldn’t be here Hadrian,” said Lupin, “he’s dangerous, it’s dangerous.”

Hadrian knew that the last part was directed towards Lupin himself.

“Like I said before, we have time,” said Hadrian doing his best to remain patient. “You did take your Wolfsbane Potion, am I correct?”

Lupin’s eyes widened in horror, but Hadrian leveled him with a hard gaze, daring him to deny it. After a moment Lupin nodded, glancing away from Hadrian as he did.

“Good,” said Hadrian, “then we have time and we’ll be fine. Now, Sirius, would you mind enlightening your old friend to what really happened on this night twelve years ago? And professor, I would appreciate it if you would remain silent and hear him out. Thank you.”

Hadrian turned to Black and gave him an encouraging nod. Black hesitated a moment, taking a sip of pumpkin juice and licking his lips as he seemed to collect his thoughts before speaking.

“I wasn’t James and Lily’s secret keeper,” he started, “I mean, I was at first, but then Peter suggested to us that they should switch secret keepers. He said that I was the obvious choice and that everyone would be going after me for the information, which we agreed was true. So Peter was made the secret keeper on his suggestion.”

Black paused and took a deep breath, licking his lips again and seeming slightly nervous as he continued.

“We knew that there was a spy and we thought it was you.” Black glanced up at Lupin looking guilty. “At the time there were so many werewolves joining up with Voldemort, we thought…”

He trailed off as he stared down at the table, his eyes distant and slightly unfocused before he gave a crazed sounding laugh. “But of course we were wrong you weren’t the spy, Peter was. That night I had gone to the hideout to check on him, but he was gone and there was no sign of a struggle. Then I heard about the attack and I went to Godric’s Hollow, but it was too late, James and Lily were dead. I found Harry but Hagrid showed up and took him to bring him to Dumbledore.

“And I went after Peter. I chased him into a muggle street and next thing I knew he was yelling at me, asking how I could betray Lily and James, the bastard. Then he pulled out his wand and there was an explosion. The traitor turned into a rat and disappeared, leaving behind just a finger. That fucking traitor got me, I just couldn’t stop laughing when I realized that he tricked me.”

There was a long moment of silence where Hadrian examined Lupin’s face as he stared at Black, his mouth hanging open.

“If it helps,” said Hadrian breaking the silence. “I have Pettigrew right here.”

He placed the cage back on the table before opening it and lifting the struggling rat out with magic, not even bothering to use his wand and not caring that the others saw him using wandless magic. Hadrian stood and moved away from the table and levitated Pettigrew above the ground for a moment before sending a strand of magic towards him, forcing him to take his human form. It was just like the first time Hadrian forced Pettigrew to take his human form. It was like watching a fast moving picture as his limbs expanded and changed. Both Black and Lupin jumped to their feet when Pettigrew appeared. Hadrian lifted a hand to stop them from moving closer, his magic spreading out to fill the room without being threatening. His magic kept Pettigrew silent as the man looked around the room in terror, eyes wide.

“I believe that should be more than sufficient to prove that Sirius is telling the truth,” said Hadrian, “and that he is innocent. He was coming to Hogwarts to kill Pettigrew, not me.”

Lupin moved around the table to stand before Black. The two men just stared at each for a moment before Lupin suddenly seized Black in a hug. Hadrian smirked slightly as he turned his attention back to Pettigrew, turning the man back into his rat form and putting him back in his cage while he gave the men a moment. He covered the cage back up with the cloth before turning back to the men who were still hugging.

Hadrian cleared his throat quietly when the men still hadn’t break apart and the two quickly broke apart making Hadrian smirk again as they turned to face him.

“I’m going to bring Pettigrew to the Ministry with a note explaining just who he is,” Hadrian told them. “After the Ministry confirms his identity Sirius can get the trial he never got and he’ll be a free man.”

“But how can you get to the Ministry?” said Lupin frowning.

“Leave that to me to worry about,” replied Hadrian handing Lupin back his wand. “Right now I believe you have more pressing matters professor. The moon is about to rise meaning you only have a few minutes before your transformation, though I’m sure Sirius will be willing to stay with you in his animagus form.”

Hadrian glanced at Black who nodded as he said this and Hadrian thought that Lupin looked grateful.

“Then I’m going to get going,” said Hadrian nodding at both men. “I’ll leave the food here, there’s preservation charms on it, but I’ll bring more food down tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” said Black, his eyes filled with something Hadrian didn’t feel entirely prepared to identify. Hadrian just nodded and gave him a small smile before exiting the shack. He had barely stepped outside before he felt Death’s magic wrap around him and the being helped bring him to the Ministry of Magic headquarters, specifically to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. He placed the cage down on the head auror’s desk along with a note he had written explaining who the rat was along with a short telling of what really happened twelve years ago.

To make sure that the Ministry didn’t try to sweep their error under the rug Hadrian had already prepared an article for _Metis_ about what had really happened. _Metis_ was quickly picking up in popularity, especially among Hogwarts students, but also outside of the school.

After that Hadrian vanished and appeared back in Hogwarts. He pulled on his invisibility cloak and went to the Room of Requirement to see if his friends had waited for him. When he arrived he was surprised to see that they were all there, though he realized that he probably shouldn’t have been.

He had already set up everything for the ritual earlier in the day and his friends had gathered pictures of loved ones lost and had written messages about them. He would have liked to perform the ritual outside on the balcony again, but with the dementors roaming the castle grounds this year he didn’t think it was a good idea. He figured that even Severus wouldn’t allow him to perform the ritual outside.

Hadrian spread his friends around the ritual circle before beginning. Like his first year he took the role of the head priest, but this year Luna took the role of the head priestess. Luna performed the ritual easily with him as though they had been performing it together for years. When the ritual was completed Hadrian allowed his friends to help him clean up before heading up to his dorm room though he wasn’t tired and headed down to the chamber. He entered Slytherin’s study and worked on prepping a few ingredients for the ritual to make Tom’s new body. It wasn’t a requirement that they be prepared on Samhain but the weakened barrier would help fuel the magic in the items.

Before leaving Hadrian grabbed the the ring and slipped it on his finger, enjoying the thrum of power, before heading back to his dorm to get ready for the day, enjoying the feel of carrying a piece of Tom’s soul with him.


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's now fanart by NoodleFerrets, check it out! https://paliefox.deviantart.com/art/A-Morte-Molestus-Fanart-Harry-Potter-741891647

Hadrian slept for only a few hours before getting up. It was late for him but early for the rest of the school. He figured that his friends wouldn’t be getting up anytime soon so he slipped a note under the Ravenclaw girls’ dorm room for Luna and Hermione telling them that he had some stuff to do pertaining to their rat problem and that he would tell them and the others about it later. Then grabbing his bag he headed down to the kitchens tickling the pear in the picture of fruit causing the painting to swing open to reveal the kitchen. 

As soon as he entered he was surrounded by house-elves eagerly bowing and curtseying as they asked what they could get for him. He found the creatures rather odd, but they seemed happy enough and he was beginning to get used to their behavior thanks to Dobby, though he had quickly realized that Dobby was odd even for a house-elf. 

“I would like breakfast to go for three,” he told the house-elves not sure if Remus was still in the shrieking shack or if he’d even be up for eating. “Oh and can I have some hot chocolate and do you have any chocolate bars?” 

The house-elves rushed to get his food and a few minutes later he was leaving with a bulging shake full of food the house elves have taken their job very seriously and supplied him with days worth of food. Pulling on his invisibility cloak he made his way to the whomping willow. It was a gray day, the rain that had been threatening to fall the day before was coming down hard and he hurried forward while holding a hand up conjuring a shield similar to an invisible umbrella to protect him from the rain. Hurling a branch at the knot on the whomping willow he froze the tree and entered the tunnel at a light jog. He removed his cloak as he approached the door shaking off droplets of water before stowing it away and wondering if there was a way to waterproof it. 

Pushing open the trapdoor he entered the shack. The first thing he noticed was Sirius in his dog form curled up on a coach sleeping, but as Hadrian closed the trapdoor he lifted his head and transformed into his human form. They stared at each other for a long moment neither knowing what to say. 

“Morning,” Hadrian said eventually making his way to the dining room. Sirius followed him and watched as he placed the food on the table wondering how much food the elves thought people ate because he could seriously feed a small army, “Is Remus still here?” 

“He’s sleeping it off upstairs,” replied Sirius with a nod. He walked forward cautiously and sat down at the table picking up a plate. 

“Wait,” said Hadrian reaching into his bag, “I forgot to give you these yesterday. I thought I would have more time before the moon came up.”

He pulled out several glass vials filled with potions. “They’re nutrient potions.”

Hadrian had brewed them in the chamber at night in preparation for Sirius’ arrival. He had gone into the forbidden forest to collect most of the ingredients owling ordering anything that he couldn’t collect. They weren’t difficult potions to make, but they were time consuming and if you messed anything up you had to start over. Reaching around his bag he managed to find the last potion and pulled it out, and this one had been a tricky one. He had somehow managed to blow up his cauldron and was sent flying across the chamber. He was pretty sure he had actually died and Death hadn’t been able to stop laughing for the next hour. One poor reaper looked ready to piss himself in fright at the sight of a laughing Death when he came to make a report. Brushing away the memory of Death laughing he held out the potion.

“This one helps remove dark magic residue,” he told Sirius, “you should drink it before you eat because it might make you sick so you don’t want anything in your stomach.”

Sirius nodded taking the potion. “I’ve used this potion before,” he told him, “back when I was an auror.”

Hadrian blinked in surprise, “I didn’t know you were an auror. But then I guess there’s a lot I don’t know about you.”

Sirius looked sad for a moment before giving him a forced looking grin and opening the potion. It took him several minutes to manage to get it all down and then he waited a little longer before piling his plate with food and digging it. Hadrian did the same taking eggs and sausage. He then poured maple syrup over his entire plate before eating. He glanced up to see Sirius staring at him.

“What?” he asked innocently. “I like sugar.” 

“But on your eggs?” said Sirius with a barking laugh and Hadrian narrowed his eyes at him. Hermione was constantly scolding him for his sugar intake. Her parents were dentists so she ate very little and was of the opinion that everyone else do the same. She seemed convinced that Hadrian would lose all teeth, gain a bunch of weight and then die from a heart attack if he didn’t change his diet. It didn’t really concern Hadrian.  

“Shut up and drink your hot chocolate,” he muttered.

“Yes mother,” said Sirius grinning as he took a large gulp from his goblet. Hadrian rolled his eyes but was unable to hide his grin.

“You’re in a good mood,” he commented. 

Sirius shrugged, “Why shouldn’t I be? I’m free, I’m going to clear my name and I get to see you again.”

Hadrian looked over Sirius, he looked sick and unhealthy, but his behavior wasn’t what he expected. There was still something off with the way he acted, but it wasn’t what one would expect from someone who had been in contact with dementors for twelve years.

“You’re more sane than I expected,” he blurted out before he could stop himself.

Sirius stared at him before laughing, a sound that made him seem slightly unhinged reminding him of the man’s wanted posters and Hadrian wondered if he could take back his comment on second thought. 

“That’s because I’m an animagus,” explained Sirius once he was finally done laughing and managed to get himself under control, “when I was in my dog form the dementors ignored me. I guess they can’t really sense animals.”

Hadrian listened curiously thinking it over and he could feel Death leaning forward curiously as well.  _ “Interesting,” _ muttered the entity,  _ “they didn’t used to do that. They feed off the energy from souls so anything should do. I guess they have acquired a taste for human after so many years in that prison. Human souls are stronger than animals, the strongest energy coming from happy memories. They must have evolved just to feed off human happiness.”   _

They fell into silence as they continued to eat Sirius loading his plates with seconds. 

“So you’re in Ravenclaw?” said Sirius eventually and Hadrian looked up in surprise before remembering that duh, he was wearing his dark blue robes with the Ravenclaw crest. 

“Yeah,” he said, “You were probably expecting Gryffindor. Everyone seemed to be.” 

Sirius shrugged. “Your mother would be proud. She was brilliant, could have been in the bird house herself. And your father would have been proud too of course, after he stopped laughing that is and making bird jokes. A Potter in the smart house. That definitely comes from your mum.”

Hadrian smiled, he hadn’t realized how much he wanted to know about his parents until then. Sure, Death had told him about his parents and he briefly met his mother’s spirit, but that wasn’t the same. And Death wasn’t human, the being couldn’t tell him details and stories about his parents like Sirius could.

“You must be smart,” said Sirius with a grin, breaking him out of his thoughts. Hadrian shrugged, he was smart he supposed, but he also figured having Death as his personal shadow could count as cheating, though he had learned not to take Death’s word on history unless it actually involved someone dying, because the being had a terrible memory when it came to the ‘boring stuff,’ even having gone so far as to sleep through the majority of the sixteenth century much to the horror of the reapers left in charge, and seemed to have some odd ideas, such as insisting Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin had been a couple.  

“He’s more than smart, he’s brilliant,” said Lupin walking into the room and nearly making Hadrian jump. He hadn’t noticed the man enter and silently berated himself for not paying more attention to his surroundings. He could sense souls dammit, people shouldn’t be able to sneak up on him. “He’s the top of my class and I’m convinced he’s holding back.”

Hadrian chose not to say anything not willing to confirm nor deny it, instead taking a sip of his own hot chocolate as Remus sat down and began taking food. 

“So,” said Sirius once Remus started eating, “what now? We turn in the rat?”

“Actually,” said Hadrian, “I already dropped him off in the head auror’s office with a note explaining exactly who he is. And today in  _ Metis _ there will be an article about Sirius Black’s innocence and Pettigrew’s betrayal. It’s not as big of a paper as  _ The Daily Prophet _ , but it has a good following, especially in Hogwarts so students will probably talk to their parents about it and once reporters from the  _ Prophet _ investigate they’ll publish the story as well.” 

Sirius and Remus just stared at Hadrian and he deliberately took his time cutting up his sausage and dunking them in syrup. 

“How did you get to the Ministry?” Lupin asked eventually. 

“Oh, that was easy. I took the Knight Bus after I left here. Kept my hood up so they wouldn’t know I was a student,” he lied easily having thought about what he would tell them on his walk over. 

“You shouldn’t have gone on your own,” said Lupin looking serious. 

Hadrian shrugged, “And who should I have gone with? There are no other adults that know what’s going on and you two were busy. It’s not like I had to worry about the escaped convict coming after me.” 

“It was still dangerous,” said Lupin, “you should have waited.”

Hadrian shrugged feeling slightly uncomfortable by Lupin’s concern, but trying not to show it. “He’s waited long enough,” he said indicating Sirius.

“I could have waited a little longer,” replied Sirius.

Hadrian opened his mouth to argue, but was interrupted by the arrival of Hedwig at the window. Perfect timing. Getting up he opened the window and Hedwig and landed on his arm. “Hey there girl,” he murmured as he took the small bundle of papers from her. He gave her a sausage and she nibbled at his ear after eating it and then flew off. Turning to the papers he saw that it was his copy of  _ Metis _ and the day’s  _ Daily Prophet _ . There was also a letter from Gringotts. Tossing the papers onto the table he watched as both men caught sight of  _ Metis’  _ headline and grabbed it to read the article ignoring the _ Daily Prophet _ , it’s main story appearing to be about faulty cauldrons. 

While they read through the article that he had written he opened the letter from Gringotts. He had visited the bank several times to meet with Chief Goblin Ragnok, who was his new accounts manager, about Sirius Black. Ragnok had agreed to begin pushing for Sirius’ trial and Hadrian had sent a letter to the bank the night before to let the goblin know that Pettigrew had successfully been handed over to the Ministry which would make the task of getting Sirius an early trial easier. Hadrian also planned on sending a letter to Madam Bones later that day asking for Sirius to have a trial so he could ‘finally learn the truth about that night.’ 

“The goblins have agreed to help push your trial forward,” he told Sirius, “As a member of house Black you hold much power and wealth and they want to insure that they have the rightful lord in place. If needed they will remove the title of Lord Black from the current holder and give it to you if you are proved innocent. Which of course you will be.”  

“Lord Black?” asked Sirius is surprise, “I would be the new Lord Black?” And then after a pause, “There’s a current Lord Black?”

“Yes,” said Hadrian amused, “you would be the new Lord Black, and as for the current Lord Black, you’re looking at him.” He held up his hand to show Sirius his lordship rings. 

“You’re Lord Black?” asked Sirius, “But how?”

“You did make me your heir,” said Hadrian with a shrug.

“I think he means, how can you be a lord when you’re not of age,” said Lupin.

“Oh, of course,” said Hadrian. In the wizarding world one could only claim lordships once they came of age, which was typically when they turn seventeen, until then the person was considered an heir and had an heir ring even if there was no current lord or lady.

“There were special circumstances,” he replied vaguely, not wanting to tell them that the goblins considered him to be of age due to his Master of Death title, something the goblins had agreed to keep quiet about. “Saviour of the wizarding world and defeater of the dark lord and all that.”

They still looked slightly skeptical so he hurried on.  

“We should actually visit Gringotts today to discuss the upcoming trial,” Hadrian told them making the two men frown and he knew what they were going to say and so beat them to it. “I need to go, otherwise they will not meet with you. I have been setting this up with them so they are expecting me. If I’m not there at a meeting  _ I _ arranged the goblins while be insulted, and I’d rather not have them as my enemy.” 

“You really have planned everything,” said Sirius  after a long pause and Hadrian nodded. 

“Of course.”  

“Alright,” said Lupin eventually, “I guess we better get going then. Are you strong enough to apparate?” he asked Sirius who frowned. 

“There’s no need for that,” Harian interjected, “the letter’s a portkey.”

“Then let’s go,” said Sirius beginning to sound eager, no doubt wanting to get everything over with and finally clear his name. Hadrian gave him his invisibility cloak, both men’s eyes widening at the sight of the familiar item.

Once Sirius had put the cloak on he held out the letter for the men to grab and they did. “Gringotts Bank,” he said activating the portkey. Instantly the letter glowed white and then he felt a tugging behind his belly button and he was yanked forward. He felt like his body was being squeezed through a far too small opening and being pressed against on all sides while going at an impossible speed. Then his feet hit the ground hard and he stumbled Lupin’s hand on his shoulder the only thing that stopped him from falling over. 

“Well, that was horrible,” he commented once his head stopped spinning. He could hear Death laughing in his head which was definitely not helping. 

“Are you alright?” asked Lupin in concern.

“I’m fine,” he assured the man though he felt rather nauseous, “I hate travelling by portkey.”

They had appeared in an empty corner of the bank lobby which was just becoming crowded. He would have prefered to have gone straight to Ragnok’s office and avoid the lobby entirely, but apparently all the offices were warded against protkeys and apparating into the bank. Once Hadrian felt like he could walk without falling over he lead Lupin over to the door leading to the back offices. He assumed that Sirius was following since he couldn’t see past the cloak, not even Death could do that. This made him frown as he thought of something.

_ “How do you know where I am when I’m under the cloak?” _ he asked Death. 

_ “Really, you believe that story? It’s a piece of my cloak, I can sense it. I just let Ignotus think I couldn’t see him and left him alone until it was time for him to die. Well, I didn’t completely leave him alone, I did visit for tea several times, in disguise of course. I liked him.” _

“Hadrian,” said Lupin breaking him out of his thoughts as they reached the door, “we should talk to a teller first.”

“No, it’s fine,” said Hadrian opening the door, “we’re expected.” 

They walked down the hall lined with offices and went straight back to Chief Ragnok’s office. Ragnok’s office was easy to spot as it was the only one with guards outside it. As they approached the guards gave Hadrian a nod which he returned and allowed them to pass. Lupin’s eyes were wide as he watched the exchange, no doubt wondering why they were being allowed into the head goblin’s office.

The office was large and lavish with an enormous desk that made Death snicker and whisper something about overcompensating, with three chairs in front of it. Ragnok sat at the desk and grinned when he saw Hadrian.

“Lord Peverell,” he greeted him.

“Chief Ragnok,” greeted Hadrian with a bow and he saw Lupin quickly do the same, “I hope your gold is overflowing on this day.” 

“Our gold is always overflowing,” replied Ragnok with a smirk. “I assume that Sirius Black is with you?” 

“Yes,” replied Hadrian. The entire exchange took place in Gobbledegook, the language of the goblins. Hadrian had discovered that he could understand the language on his first visit with Ragnok when he had understand a conversation between two goblins. According to Death he could understand and speak any language as language meant nothing to Death. It had been very useful when he traveled over the summer. 

“Sirius you can take off the cloak,” said Hadrian switching back to English. Sirius appeared a moment later. Hadrian ignored his look of shock as well as Remus’ shocked face as he took a seat. It seemed he had done nothing but surprise the past couple of days and they didn’t even know the really interesting stuff. Remus and Sirius followed his lead and sat facing the goblin.

“Ragnok, this is Sirius Black and Professor Remus Lupin,” Hadrian introduced them after a moment. “Though I’m sure you recognize Sirius.”

“Of course,” said Ragnok with a grin, “when it was discovered that you had never received a trial and were in fact innocent we goblins began working to force the Ministry into giving you a trial. Unfortunately the Ministry does not look highly upon goblins even if they do entrust us with their gold and the ability to distribute lordships. With the capture of Pettigrew there should be little trouble acquiring a trial.”

“You know that I’m innocent?” asked Sirius wide eyed.

“Lord Peverell informed me of your innocence.”

“And you believed him, just like that?” said Sirius in amazement and disbelief.

“Of course,” replied Ragnok turning his grin on Hadrian. “Lord Peverell is a friend of the goblin nation and a powerful young man. There is no reason for us to not take him at his word.” 

Hadrian grinned back at Ragnok feeling the eyes of Sirius and Remus on him. He could practically hear their questions. Goblins as a whole were untrusting creatures who disliked wizards. The title of friend of the goblin nation was one that should not be taken lately, for though most wizards mistreated goblins and acted as though they were inferior, the goblins were a race that should not be messed with. Very few wizards had been given such a title, the most notable being Merlin. 

“Has the Ministry scheduled the trial yet?” asked Hadrian getting the conversation back on track. 

“The Ministry has not yet set a trial date as of right now,” replied Ragnok, “but they have changed the order to kill Sirius Black on sight to bring in for questioning and they are calling the dementors back to Azkaban.” 

“Then should I turn myself in?” asked Sirius.

“No,” said Hadrian and Ragnok at the same time. The two had already discussed what they would do.

“You will not turn yourself in until the Ministry sets a date for a public trial,” continued Ragnok. “Otherwise they may attempt to throw you straight back in Azkaban or kill you to spare them from letting their errors be made known. 

“The truth about your innocence has already been voiced in one paper,  _ Metis _ , and no doubt  _ The Daily Prophet _ is already looking into it and will print their own article. Once the news of your possible innocence and Pettigrew’s survival gets out then the public will demand to know the truth and the Ministry will be forced to take action swiftly and publically.” 

“How long do you think that will take?” asked Sirius hopefully.

“With the continued support of the goblin nation for your trial and public outcry we predict the Ministry will schedule a trial by the end of the week. If the Minister is smart he will try to get out ahead of this and finish it fast.”

_ “Which he isn’t,” _ thought Hadian inwardly rolling his eyes,  _ “but luckily Madam Bones is no idiot.”  _

“The end of the week!” cried Sirius in disbelief a grin spreading across his face.

“There is one more thing we must do,” said Ragnok turning to Hadrian who removed his Black lordship and handed it to the goblin without a word. “Since you have never been found guilty of a crime and are no longer imprisoned you can take up the title of Lord Black, news which should help you get a trial.”

He held the ring out to Sirius who hesitated before taking it. “All you have to do is put on the ring, if it accepts you then you will be Lord Black, if not the title will return to Lord Peverell.” 

Sirius nodded before slipping on the ring which glowed faintly for a moment. “Congratulations Lord Black,” said Ragnok as he picked up a small box on his desk and handed it to Hadrian. Hadrian took the box and slipped the Black heir ring onto his finger which also glowed faintly as it accepted him. 

“The last thing to discuss is where you should stay until the trial Lord Black,” Ragnok went on, “Lord Peverell has an idea I believe.”

“I do,” replied Hadrian as all eyes turned to him, “When looking for a place for you to stay I did some research into the main Black home, Grimmauld Place. I haven’t actually visited, but I sent my house elf to check and all the wards are still holding.”

“Yeah, those wards are sustained by dark magic, it will take a lot more than a few years of vacancy for them to fade,” said Sirius, “I grew up there. That place is a fortress.” 

“As Lord Black you have control of the wards,” pointed out Ragnok, “making it the safest place for you to go. Your lordship ring acts as a portkey and can bring you there from wherever you are as long as there are no wards blocking you.”

Sirius was frowning, but he nodded, “Everyone knew how much I hated that place so it would probably be the last place anyone would look for me.” 

“Then you will still at Grimmauld Place until the Ministry calls you for your trial,” said Ragnok with a decisive nod.     

“Thank you Ragnok,” said Hadrian speaking up, “I believe that’s all?”

“That is all,” agreed Ragnok with a nod of his head. Hadrian rose to his feet and Remus and Sirius did the same. 

“May your weapons always be sharp,” said Hadrian.  

“And may your enemies tremble at your name,” Ragnok answered back. Then with a bow Hadrian lead Lupin and Sirius out of the room. 

“That went rather well,” remarked Hadrian. He heard Sirius snort softly.

“Well,” began Lupin, “I guess you need to go to Grimmauld Place and I should get Hadrian back to Hogwarts before his absence is noticed.”

Hadrian pulled the letter back out. It would return them to the location they had originally used the portkey. “Are you good?” he asked Sirius, “Do you know how to activate your ring?”

“Yes,” he replied handing Hadrian back his cloak, “I better get going, but I’m warning you now, I’m not staying in that place for more than a week.”

“You won’t have to,” Hadrian assured him. He didn’t know much about Sirius’ childhood, but it clearly wasn’t good if he was so reluctant to return to his childhood home. Perhaps having someone with him might help he thought. “Can I come with you?”

“You want to go to Grimmauld Place?” asked Sirius in surprise.

Hadrian nodded, “I never got around to going when I was Lord Black.”

“You need to get back to Hogwarts,” argued Lupin, but it sounded weak making Hadrian believe that Lupin didn’t want to leave Sirius alone any more than Hadrian. He probably knew why Sirius didn’t want to go. 

“It’s Sunday,” Hadrian pointed out, “so it’s not like I’m missing any classes and my friends know where I am and they’ll cover for me if they need to. Plus I will be with a professor.” 

“You’re as terrible as your father,” Lupin muttered, but he looked amused, “I guess it’s alright. It’s not like I’ll be missed, the other professors will think I’m recovering from last night still.” 

“Then it’s settled!” declared Sirius hooking arms with Hadrian and Lupin a second later they were gone without a sound as Sirius activated his ring. They appeared on the front steps of a worn looking Victorian style home. The door swung open for Sirius with a wave of his hand and they were instantly assaulted with a cloud of dust. 

Hadrian blinked dust out of his eyes trying not to sneeze. “How long has this place been abandoned exactly?” 

“Since my mother died,” answered Sirius, “I guess Kreacher died too.”

Entering the house Hadrian looked around curiously. It was dark the windows not letting much light in due to a layer of grime. Dust covered every surface and the wallpaper was faded. Covering the wall next to the door where rows of severed house-elf heads. “Well that’s not morbid at all,” he muttered, then louder, “I can have my house elf come over to help clean, but I think it will take a while even for him.”

He was beginning to regret giving Dobby the day off now and was wondering if the little house-elf would mind helping clean anyway. This place didn’t appear to be livable. Perhaps he could give Dobby some more clothes as a sort of bonus.

Hadrian had barely finished speaking when screaming erupted from the end of the hall, “WHO HAS DARED ENTER THE HOUSE OF BLACK!” 

Hadrian covered his sensitive ears in alarm, “What is that?!”

“That would be mummy dearest,” replied Sirius stalking down the hall to what Hadrian realized was a portrait framed by curtains. 

“YOU!” screamed the portrait at the sight of Sirius, “HOW DARE YOU COME BACK HERE AFTER EVERYTHING YOU’VE DONE! YOU ARE NO BLACK-”

“Yeah, nice to see you too,” Sirius said sarcastically as he struggled to close the curtains cutting off the woman mid rant. Everything fell silent as the curtains closed sending up another cloud of dust.

“She seems charming,” remarked Hadrian.

“You don’t know the half of it,” said Sirius tying the curtains closed.

They set to cleaning up the manor as best they could Hadrian calling Dobby to help Sirius telling the elf he could take any clothes in the house. Hadrian headed upstairs while Sirius and Lupin began to tackle the kitchen. He blasted away dust and cobwebs with his wand as he went, but he quickly became distracted when he stumbled upon the Black library. The room was enormous even bigger than the school library and a quick scan of the nearest book titles had him questioning how legal most of the books were. Wandering through the shelves he carefully removed the dust from the books scanning their titles as he went.

_ “Why didn’t you tell me I owned all this?” _

_ “I was afraid you’d never leave if you knew it existed.” _

Hadrian didn’t argue with Death as his eyes caught on one of the book titles,  _ A Guide to Manipulating Souls _ . “Hadrian? You up here?” called Sirius and without thinking Hadrian snatched the book and shoved it in his bag before answering, “I’m in the library!” 

“A true Ravenclaw,” said Sirius with a chuckle, “should have known you’d be here. Though you’ll want to be careful. Most of this stuff is pretty dark.”

“Magic is magic, it’s intent that matters,” Hadrian said absently following Sirius out of the library. It was then that he felt the faint familiar energy like a buzz against his skin. The Gaunt ring heated slightly on his finger as though in recognition and he could feel Tom’s soul pulling on him. He didn’t react as he continued to clean downstairs slowly making his way towards where he could feel the energy coming from. 

Finally he entered a drawing room feeling the energy increase as he spotted its source, a gold locket with a serpentine  _ S _ in emeralds being kept in a glass case on the mantel.

_ “There was a horcrux here the entire time?” _ he asked in disbelief.

_ “I could have sworn this one was in a cave…” _ Death trailed off. 

Reaching for the locket he almost touched the glass before something suddenly collided with his legs knocking him to the ground. He reacted on instinct sending a blast of magic at whatever had attacked him sending it off him and into the wall with a thud. Sitting up he spotted what looked like a bundle of bones barely held together by wrinkly skin and wearing a dirty cloth. It appeared that the Black house-elf wasn’t as dead as they thought. 

Sending a stunner at the dazed elf before he could recover he scrambled to his feet and grabbed the locket. It warmed in his hand the energy of the soul fragment thrumming through his body. Tucking the locket away he went to inform Sirius about the insane house-elf while silently celebrating his retrieval of another horcrux.  

  
  



	30. Chapter Thirty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapter contains a big reference to the show Dead Like Me, if you haven't watched it I recommend it.

Walking to the Great Hall for breakfast Hadrian grinned as he scanned over the article in the  _ Daily Prophet _ . It hadn’t taken the paper long to publish an article about Peter Pettigrew appearing alive and well at the Ministry and they were now demanding answers and demanding that Sirius Black be given a trial. Everything was going perfectly, he had already gotten a response back from Madam Bones assuring him that his godfather would be getting a trial. Now he just had to hope the Ministry worked as fast as he expected they would. He would have to see about getting time off from school if the trial was held during the week. 

“Hadrian!”

Turning he caught sight of Hermione jogging towards him her arms full of books just as he entered the Great Hall.

“Morning ‘Mione,” he greeted the girl as they sat down at the Ravenclaw table. It was still early and they were some of the only people in the hall having beaten some of the professors. 

“Have you finished the Divination assignment?” Hadrian asked Hermione as they sat down at the Ravenclaw table. 

“Yes,” said Hermione with a hmph, “though the entire thing is ridiculous.”

The assignment was to look at the stars and planet arrangement and make predictions for the rest of the month.

“I finished mine yesterday,” said Hadrian pouring them both tea. “I just made stuff up. I’m getting robbed next week, falling off my broom the next and then getting a horrible fever that’s going to land me in the hospital wing.” 

“You can’t just make stuff up!” cried Hermione though her voice lacked any true venom. He knew that if it was any other class Hermione would really fight him on it. 

“You’re probably right,” said Hadrian with a shrug as he buttered his toast. “I should ask Luna.” 

Hermione just rolled her eyes as she propped up her Transfiguration textbook on the table. Hadrian glanced up and was surprised to see Trelawney making her way through the Great Hall towards the teacher’s table. The woman was almost never seen outside the Divination tower, claiming that walking among the masses ‘clouded her inner eye.’  

“You know,” started Hadrian watching the professor as she sat at the table, “Trelawney looks a lot like an insect, don’t you think?” 

“Hadrian!” exclaimed Hermione though he thought she was smiling slightly.

“Perhaps we could turn her into an insect,” continued Hadrian watching the strange woman as she chatted to McGonagall who looked like she wanted to bolt from the hall. “It would be an advanced transfiguration, but I’m sure we could handle it. McGonagall may even give us extra credit if we pull it off. Though the real question is, would anyone notice the difference?”

“We still wouldn’t learn anything that’s for sure,” said Hermione with a snort. 

Hadrian’s eyes widened and he gasped dramatically. “Hermione, are you giving me permission to turn Trelawny into an insect?” 

“Absolutely not!” said Hermione sternly, “She’s still a professor.”

“But a horrible one,” whined Hadrian, “and what if I turned her into a spider instead? That would freak out a certain annoying redhead.”

Ron Weasley had been annoying Hermione as of late. He had constantly called her a know it all and accused her of being a showoff. Neville had told them that Ron’s boggart had taken the form of a spider during Defense and the twins had proudly told them this was because they had transformed Ron’s teddy bear into a spider when he was little. 

“You can’t attack a teacher Hadrian,” Hermione reprimanded him causing him to pout.

“But you were going to set Snape on fire in our first year,” he argued.

“I didn’t actually do it,” said Hermione turning slightly red, “and besides, your life was in danger.”

“But my life's in danger now according to Trelawney!” pointed out Hadrian, “What if one of her predictions comes true?”

“Then I’ll gladly avenge you,” said Hermione sipping her tea. Hadrian grinned not saying anything though he was silently thinking that he would have to tell his friends about him eventually. The fact that he was immortal was a pretty big deal.  

They were interrupted by the arrival of a very sleepy looking Draco who slouched his way over towards the Ravenclaw table to sit next to Hermione. Hadrian was surprised to see Draco up; Draco was not a morning person which was confirmed by the fact that he currently looked like a zombie. 

“Did you sleep at all last night?” asked Hermione in a bossy tone. 

“Yes mother,” grumbled Draco making grabbing motions at the tea. Rolling his eyes Hadrian poured him a cup. 

It didn’t take long for the two to start bickering as Draco slowly woke up. Hadrian allowed his mind to wander as he flipped through the  _ Dailey Prophet _ without actually reading it. His thoughts inadvertently strayed to Tom and found himself pressing his hand against the locket under his shirt. Both the locket and the ring felt warm and he had the feeling that Tom wanted to talk to him, or at least wanted to form outside the mirror.  

It was a long day as he had to go through it twice going through his first four classes before finding an empty corridor to use his time turner to go to the three classes with overlapping times. It was after meeting up with his friends in the room of requirement that he made his way into the chamber. Entering Slytherin’s study he pulled out his registry of reapers knowing that he would need to get energy for Tom to form, though he may have found a solution for that. He flipped through until he came to a sigil that was glowing faintly which meant the reaper was going after a soul. Hadrian’s blade appeared in his hand and he tapped the blade to the sigil to summon the reaper. 

A young woman with honey blonde hair just past her shoulders appeared. She was dressed in a sweatshirt and jeans and seemed sort of confused by why she was there. She looked around the study before noticing Hadrian and walking towards him.

“Um, hi,” said Hadrian glancing down at the book. “George? We met briefly when you signed this book and I know that you're on a schedule, but I would like you to take me with you when you reap the person’s soul.” 

“Alright,” said the reaper with a shrug, holding out her hand to Hadrian. He noted that she had an American accent and he honestly couldn’t tell if she had agreed to let him come because he was technically her boss or because she just didn’t know what was going on. He took her hand and they disappeared. It was like blinking and then he was standing in a city that he didn’t recognize, but he thought he was in America, Chicago possibly? 

“So, uh, why are you here?” asked the reaper.

“I’m just going to collect the life force from the person who dies,” said Hadrian. 

The reaper nodded in a way that suggested she still didn’t know what was going on before scanning the crowd. 

“Where are you?” she muttered, before her eyes landed on a woman in a business suit. “There you are.” 

“How’s she going to die?” asked Hadrian curiously. The reaper had just listed accidents under the type of deaths she handled. The reaper nodded up and Hadrian looked to see a piano being hauled up on a rope. “You have got to be kidding me. What is this, a cartoon?”

“I call it my life, or whatever this is, unlife?” said the reaper with a shrug. “I get stuck with all the weird deaths. Death by banana peel, tie caught in copy machine, flying toilet seats.”

“Do you collect a lot of souls?” asked Hadrian as he watched the woman move closer to the piano.

“You’d be surprised,” said the reaper. “Stay here.”

George made her way into the crowd and disappeared among them. Hadrian watched as the rope holding up the piano snapped and couldn’t help but flinch slightly when it crashed to the ground right on top of the woman. As the crowd ran the other direction Hadrian made his way towards the piano and the waiting reaper, his blade leaping to his hand. He could feel the moment the woman died and he swung his blade through the air, calling her life force to him. The reaper had already collected the woman’s soul and turned to him looking uncertain. 

“Is that all?” she asked and he nodded.

“Yes, that’s all. I can get myself back.”

The reaper nodded looking relieved before disappearing. Hadrian disappeared a moment later appearing back in the chamber. Putting the mirror on the desk he flicked the energy into it.  

Knowing that it would take a couple minutes for Tom to gain a physical form he gathered some items and left Slytherins’ study and went into the main chamber. He placed a large stone pull on the ground then placed a large pile of bones in it and used a small controlled fiendfyre to burn the bones, turning them to ash. Pulling out the book on souls he had taken from the Black library he flipped open to the ritual he had found and scanned it over.

“What are you doing?” asked Tom interrupting him, his brow furrowed as he examined the burning bones. 

“Burning them down to ash,” explained Hadrian, “they’re bones from someone not given a proper burial. I actually found them not that far from here. The ashes will be used in the ritual to create your new body.”

Tom frowned slightly at this, but it was only for a moment and then his face was blank again. Tom walked over to the large bones that were the only remainder of the basilisk. He ran his hand along one of the large bones and Hadrian’s gaze drifted away from the fire to watch Tom. Tom’s fingers were long and slender and Hadrian wondered absently if he played piano. 

“It’s a shame that she had to die,” said Tom, though Hadrian didn’t think he sounded too sad, though he was finding that Tom rarely showed any emotion. He wasn’t sure if this was just the way Tom was or if it had to do with the fact that this was just a fragment of Tom Riddle’s soul, or perhaps it was a mixture of both. 

“Well, she was attacking me Tom,” said Hadrian dryly before returning his gaze back to the fire, cautiously adding more magic to the flames. “If you had just listened to me then she would still be alive.”

Tom winced slightly. “That was not how I wanted things to go. Though it was interesting, the way you killed her. Fiendfyre isn’t an easy spell and it's incredibly dark, but you handled it with ease. And here you are using it again as though it were nothing.” 

While he had been talking Tom had moved closer to Hadrian until he was standing directly behind him. Tom was so close they were nearly touching and if Tom had needed to breath Hadrian would have been able to feel his breathe on his neck. Hadrian found himself wanting to lean back into Tom, to touch him, but he restrained himself and focused on the fire.

“It’s just fire,” he said dismissively. 

“Just fire you say, and yet very few wizard’s dare try to control it. How ever did you learn such dark magic?” asked Tom sounding genuinely curious.

“I think you’re well aware that if one wishes to learn such things, they can always find a way,” replied Hadrian thinking of the way Tom had trained his followers much the same way he was doing with his. “I don’t view magic as dark and light, magic is magic.”

“I agree,” said Tom, his voice so low that he was almost whispering his words into Hadrian’s ear. “There is no dark and light, good and evil. Just power and those willing to take it.”

“Or be driven insane trying to gain it,” said Hadrian forcing himself to step forward and away from Tom as he set the book aside to slowly put out the fire and began checking through the bone ash to check that there were no large pieces remaining. Tom let out a faintly bitter chuckle as he walked to the other side of the stone bowl to face Hadrian. 

Hadrian straightened up and summoned a container and then lifted the ash into it with magic. One more ingredient ready for the ritual. Too bad he still had a lot more to do before he could begin. Namely collecting the rest of the horcruxes, though according to Death there were only three soul fragments left and one of them was the remaining soul making up Voldemort. Vanishing the container to the study he picked up the book again. 

He looked up to see Tom watching him and he raised an eyebrow at him questioningly.

“When will you be able to perform the ritual?” asked Tom after a moment, his face neutral though Hadrian didn’t think he seemed happy.  

“Not for a while yet,” said Hadrian watching Tom closely eyes narrowed, “is that a problem?”

“Of course not,” said Tom turning and walking deeper into the chamber.

“Then why do you act like there’s a problem?” asked Hadrian, annoyance creeping into his voice. It seemed that every time the ritual was brought up Tom would become distant. “I thought you would want to be brought back, to gain a proper body? That was what you were trying to do by eating my friend’s soul, wasn’t it? What was the point of that otherwise?”

“But will it be me?” hissed Tom and Hadrian frowned. This sounded like the same thing Tom had said to him in the chamber last year. “You’ve told me about what I’m like now, what I’ve become. I don’t want to return as some insane creature.”

“You won’t,” said Hadrian, though he was frowning slightly. He knew that the ritual would restore Tom’s soul which was the source of his insanity, but at the back of his mind he wondered if it would be enough to restore Tom’s mind, or if the damage had already been done. He wanted to restore Tom Riddle, not the Voldemort that the Wizarding World had come to fear. He sent a questioning prod at Death hoping the being would be able to tell him more about what the ritual would do to Tom, but to his surprise there was no reply. 

“What are you reading?” asked Tom leaning over his shoulder and making him realize that he had been quiet for several minutes. He allowed the subject change holding the book so Tom could read the title. “You know I don’t actually know German. It wasn’t exactly a popular language to learn when I was growing up.”

Hadrian blinked in surprise, he hadn’t even realized that the book wasn’t in English. Languages were coming easier to him and according to Death soon he wouldn’t even have to learn the language to understand it, his brain would just automatically translate it for him. “It’s a book on souls,  _ A Guide to Manipulating Souls _ .” 

“Oh? How interesting. Are you planning on controlling me Hadrian?” Tom sounded amused now as he smirked down at him. 

“I’d never dream of it Tom,” he said with a roll of his eyes walking back to the study Tom following behind him a leisurely pace. “I may have actually found a way to allow you to retain your form outside the mirror. It wouldn’t be a physical body, but you won’t have to rely on me for energy and it will be solid. It would be a temporary solution until I complete the ritual for your actual physical body.”

“Really?” Tom was unable to completely hide his eagerness, “And you’re sure it will work?”

“I talked to my friend about and we believe it should work.” Death had actually said that it couldn’t make things any worse.   

Reaching into his bag he began pulling out items he had collected for the ritual, most of the items he already had since they would be used in the ritual for Tom’s new body. Green candles, thestral hair, phoenix feather, and a unicorn horn were added to his supplies. The hardest ingredient to get was the soul itself, but Hadrian had more than enough of Tom’s soul for the ritual to work. Hopefully. 

He could use Death's help with the ritual, but he didn’t know where the being was. He knew that the being couldn’t be with him all the time, but he had grown used to them being around almost constantly. But he couldn’t rely on Death, in fact Death was aware of the ritual he was planning on performing and perhaps had left him wanting him to perform it on his own. Compared to the ritual he was planning on performing in the future it should be easy. Pulling down a cauldron he begin brewing the potion that would be the focal point of the ritual. 

Leaving the potion he went back into the chamber itself. The chamber was designed to work as a giant ritual site all the curving snakes not just decoration, but designed so they would absorb magic and amplify it. Using his own blood to draw a circle he began to fill in the runes around the edges. The ritual had called for the blood of the person whose soul was being affected, something about the blood having been in contact with the soul within the person’s body, but Death had assured Hadrian that his blood would work, though they hadn’t gone into details about why. 

He could feel Tom’s eyes on him the entire time he worked watching his every move, but he remained silent allowing for Hadrian to concentrate. The potion finished and he placed the cauldron in the center of the rune filled circle. It was almost scary how easy this ritual was, most of the rituals in the book really, but then he had to remind himself that for most people acquiring a soul would be a rather difficult task so he had it easy. 

He gathered all the soul fragments he had gathered with his death scythe which he had pretended to take out of his bag, feeling rather than seeing Tom’s form flicker out of existence. He dropped the locket into the cauldron having decided to make it the new anchor for Tom’s soul. Holding the blade over the cauldron he released the soul fragments watching as silvery liquid dripped from the blade into the cauldron. He could see spots of black among the silver which he guessed was from where the soul had been torn sort of like scar tissue. With a wave of his hand he stirred the potion then standing backed away from the ritual circle making sure to not being standing on any part of it. Then wandlessly levitating the cauldron he tipped out its contents onto the runes. The liquid quickly spread, but only on the runes as though being kept in place by an invisible barrier. It’s consistency reminded Hadrian of mercury as it spread to completely cover the entire ritual circle. The locket was left sitting in the center of the circle without a drop of potion touching it.

Then the potion began to retreat back to the center of the circle, towards the locket taking the blood with it leaving the chamber floor once again unmarked. The locket seemed to absorb the viscous liquid until nothing remained. Walking forward to pick up the locket Hadrian was suddenly stopped by what felt like a viscous tug on his core. A shudder racked his body and there was a brief stab of pain in his forehead right where his now invisible scar used to be. As fast as the strange sensation came it quickly faded and he found himself blinking out dark spots in his vision. All he could figure was that it was due to his blood being used in the ritual; it must have caused some sort of reaction, but with Death still being unresponsive he had no way to ask. 

Turning his attention back to the locket he reached to pick it up, but was beaten to it. Tom smirked at him his face barely an inch away from Hadrian’s own his eyes a silvery grey and had they always been that color? 

“Since I am the Heir of Slytherin, this belongs to me,” Tom said cheekily slipping the chain around his neck. 

Quickly straightening Hadrian eyed the solid looking shade. Without thinking he reached for and grabbed Tom’s hand. It was cool to the touch, but not freezing, not unlike Hadrian’s own body temperature, but otherwise seemed almost completely solid. Before Tom could interact by channeling energy through his form, but he had never been quite solid. It wasn’t perfect now and Hadrian knew that he wouldn’t be able to sustain this form permanently, it wasn’t a body, just a way to give a soul form. It would eventually destabilize as such a form couldn’t be permanent and the fact that it wasn’t a complete soul would cause it degenerate faster. The locket would draw in energy from around it to sustain Tom, but if he used too much energy he would lose form and be forced to retreat into the locket to recover. 

There was also the fact that Hadrian was the only person who would be able to see and hear him as was effectively a spirit anchored by the soul in the locket, and the other horcruxes he supposed. 

“While I do hope I’m entertaining you, I would appreciate it if you gave me my hand back.”

Tom sounded amused and Hadrian blinked as he realized he had been examining Tom’s hand throughout his musings, or more like playing with, turning it and bending the fingers as though testing their dexterity.

Hadrian sent a glare at Tom trying not to blush at his behavior. “Why should I?” he snapped feeling rather childish, though he still let go, “I gave you this body in the first place.”

“Oh?” said Tom his grin turning almost impish, “Is that how it is now? Do you believe yourself to own me Hadrian? Shall I bow before my new lord?”

He gave a mocking bow while still managing to make it look elegant and well practiced. Hadrian rolled his eyes at the show. He often forgot how dramatic Tom could be, not that Hadrian was one to talk, though Hadrian blamed Death for any of his more showy behavior, Tom had no such excuse. 

“As though you’d ever call me your lord Tom,” he replied.

Tom looked thoughtful as though he were actually thinking it over, “I suppose not, but then you’re not quite a lord yet are you? Not until you turn that group of yours into true followers and devote yourself fully to a cause. So really, you should be calling me lord, as it is my proper title.”

“I’m more of a dark lord than you are currently Riddle, at least in this form.” He didn’t point out that he was an actual lord of several houses according to wizarding law. He didn’t feel like explaining that and the last thing he needed was the spirit scrutinizing his lordship ring and recognizing the Potter crest. 

“Calling me Riddle now? Have I struck a nerve? Still haven’t announced your intent at making yourself a dark lord I see.”

Hadrian ignored Tom’s words as he summoned his bag from the study, “I’m leaving now, you can stay here and do whatever you like. There should be plenty of books to entertain you. Just don’t leave the chamber. Other people can’t see you, but they can see the locket and you can’t go anywhere without the locket.” 

Turning on his heel Hadrian left the chamber glancing back once to see Tom hadn’t moved and was watching him leave. Returning to his dorm he found everyone else asleep. He had just changed out of his robes and gotten ready to pull the curtains closed around his bed when he felt a tugging sensation and suddenly Tom was standing in front of him. Hadrian let out a noise of surprise at the sudden appearance and Tom looked equally surprised confusion written all over his face as he glanced around the dorm as though trying to figure out how he got there. 

There was motion from one of the beds and Hadrian realized the curtain was being drawn back, and there was Tom standing in the middle of the dorm room right where he wasn’t supposed to be, not that Tom could be seen, no all his roommates would see was Salazar Slytherin’s floating locket. And wouldn’t that take some explaining. 

Grabbing Tom’s arm Hadrian dragged him onto his own bed with him and closed the curtains immediately throwing up a sticking and silencing charm. Both were silent as they listened to the other boy shuffle his way towards the bathroom. Hadrian breathed out in relief that he wouldn’t have to obliviate one of his classmates. 

It was then that he realized that he was in his bed with the teenage spirit of the dark lord on top of him a growing smirk appearing on the older teen’s face. 

“Already have plans for my new body Hadrian?” he asked teasingly though looking close Hadrian could see that he was beginning to grow hazy around the edges. He would have to retreat into the locket soon, the locket not having enough time to gather much energy yet to sustain him for longer. 

“Get off me Tom,” Hadrian growled through gritted teeth. Tom sat up lazily leaning on knees at the foot of the bed as Hadrian scrambled back. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Tom raised an eyebrow, “I thought that was obvious, you’re the one that dragged me into your bed.”

Hadrian let out a growl of frustration pinching the bridge of his nose. He needed to think. 

“I don’t know what happened,” said Tom completely serious, “One moment I was in the chamber reading and then I was here. I felt this tugging sensation and my first thought was that you had somehow summoned me until I realized you hadn’t expected me.”

Hadrian remembered the tugging sensation he had felt right before Tom appeared. Had he somehow summoned Tom? But he hadn’t even been thinking about the spirit! He could really use Death right about now, preferably to have a face to face chat with the being though that was going to be hard with Tom here though his fading form suggested he wouldn’t be there for much longer. 

_ “I have a teenage dark lord in my bed and I don’t know what to do!” _ he thought, and of course that was what got Death’s attention. 

The first thing he heard was laughter then,  _ “Wow, and here I thought you’d at least wait until he had a proper body before jumping his bones.”  _

_ “Death!” _ Hadrian was now trying not to blush.

“Hadrian?” asked Tom, “Are you alright?”

He actually sounded concerned making Hadrian wonder just what he looked like right then. He waved the boy’s concern away quickly making his face into a blank mask, “Just give me a second to think.”

Tom was thankfully quiet as he closed his eyes and focused on Death.  _ “Where were you? Never mind actually, do you know what happened?” _

He could feel the being look through his memories, watching as Hadrian made the potion for the ritual and marked the floor.  _ “You performed the ritual correctly, though you shouldn’t be able to summon Tom, at least not like that, perhaps with your blood since it was used in the ritual and, oh.” _

_ “What?” _

_ “Hang on.” _ He could feel Death’s gaze extend outward to examine Tom who was clearly trying not to fidget as he felt the invisible gaze on him.  _ “Oh my.” _

Now Death sounded really amused and Hadrian could feel his frustration growing,  _ “What? Just tell me!” _

_ “It seems your blood did more than I expected. His spirit is tethered to you.” _

_ “And what in Merlin’s name does that mean exactly?! I thought that was the purpose of the locket.” _

_ “The locket is what sustains him, it’s only purpose is to anchor his spirit to this plane along with the other horcruxes as well as provide energy for him hold a form. This should allow him to move freely as long as it has the locket, but since your blood was used in the ritual instead of his own he’s tethered to you, meaning he’s connected to you. If he strays too far from you he will be pulled back to your side.” _

It took Hadrian a moment to process this. “Shit.” Just what he needed, Tom Riddle following him around all day. Looking up he opened his mouth to tell the other boy the bad news, but Tom had vanished leaving behind the locket. Sighing Hadrian picked up the locket and after a moment slipped it around his neck. He could feel the gentle hum of Tom’s soul stronger than ever inside it. He was not looking forward to explaining the situation to him.

I hate my life he thought collapsing onto his bed with a groan.

_ “And just think, you’ll only live forever!”  _

Hadrian let out another groan before turning over to go to sleep.


End file.
